Some friendships are forever
by Zura4eva
Summary: Katsura is acting strangely and Gintoki is trying to understand why.
1. Doubts

_'Gintoki!'_

_'Eh?'_

_'Don't change. It would take a lot of effort to kill you. I'd rather not do it.'_

_'Zura, if you change I'll be the first to cut you down!'_

It was one of those nights; the moon's ethereal silver light shone upon the Kabukicho district of Edo. Though it was late, the busy district was still abuzz with life as its inhabitants walked up and down the roads moving from one place to another. Many shops had signs with bright lights of various colours which invaded the senses of those who passed under them, beckoning them to enter.

As the silver haired samurai walked along the buzzling streets, his mind was beset with countless memories. Whenever he was idle, he would always remember the old days when his life had been much different and his sensei and his comrades were still alive...

He stopped in front of a ramen shop which he often frequented and opened the door.

'Sorry, we're closed - Ah Gintoki! Long time!' Ikumatsu, the owner of the shop beamed at him as he approached and took a seat.

'Yep, have to watch my wallet now that I've got unwanted kids in my house.' As he said this he couldn't help the smile that came to his lips. Kagura and Shinpachi were anything but unwanted; they were like family to him. He looked around with lazy red eyes and noted that no one else was around.

'Don't worry, he'll be here soon.' The ramen shop owner said knowingly, a small smile on her face. 'How about I make you something while you wait? Don't worry, it's on the house.'

'Oh, in that case can I have a strawberry parfait, red beans on rice and-'

'Hey! That's not the kind of food I'm talking about! Is that even food?!' She couldn't help yelling.

'Alright, alright, how about some strawberry _milk_ and some odango-'

'As if that's any different!'

The door slid open as they were speaking and a man wearing a straw hat on long, silky dark hair entered. He placed his straw hat down before approaching, his serious brown eyes examining the situation before him. He gave a knowing smile.

'Still taking strawberry milk after all this time? Why don't you grow up?'

'Look who's talking. You asked us to meet and you can't even come on time!' Gintoki snapped as Katsura sat down on the seat next to him.

'You always come late. Didn't expect you to be early today.' Having said this, he turned to Ikumatsu and inclined his head slightly. 'Ikumatsu-dono, it's good to see you.'

'Yes, Katsura, good to see you too. Now, what would you guys like?' She asked, looking from one to the other.

'Soba, if you don't mind.'

'Straw-'

PUNCH!

'Ah ah, ramen is fine.' Gintoki remedied as he wiped at his bloody nose.

As Ikumatsu proceded to cook the selected dishes with a disturbingly satisfied smile, Gintoki noticed his friend watching her silently.

'Oi Zura, are you going to let me know why you asked me to come or are you going to just sit there and fantasize?' He hid a smile as Katsura blushed furiously.

'It's not Zura, it's Katsura!' Katsura shouted indignantly. He gave a sigh and returned to being serious.

'Really Gintoki, do I need a reason to ask you to meet with me?' He asked silently.

Gintoki's eyes narrowed slightly and he cocked his head to one side. For some reason, he felt like Katsura was hiding something from him. 'Is that it then? You could have just come to my place like you usually do.'

Katsura turned to Ikumatsu as she placed their food in front of them. 'Thank you Ikumatsu-dono.' He said gently.

'Sure. I'll leave you guys to talk.' She replied before doing just that and leaving the room. Gintoki took up his bowl and began eating as Katsura went on to speak.

'I wanted to meet you here because I didn't want the kids to be around. I wanted you to be alone this time.'

'You're creeping me out.'

Katsura gave one of his annoying laughs. It reverberated around the room and grated on Gintoki's nerves.

'Only you can think of such disturbing things, you perm haired freak.' He said with an irritating smile on his handsome face.

'What the hell? Where did that come from?!' Gintoki wondered as Katsura helped himself to some Soba.

Having had enough, he put down his half finished bowl of ramen, stood up and held Katsura by his haori. Katsura was surprised to say the least, but then his face relaxed and he pushed Gintoki back. Both of them stood now and stared into each other.

'What's going on Zura? You're acting strangely today.'

The white haired samurai watched as his friend closed his eyes and looked at him intently.

'I've been thinking lately. About how things have changed; the paths we have taken that have led us to where we are today.' As he said this he looked outside the window. 'You have made it clear you won't join the cause and I realise I can't convince you. I want to say farewell, Gintoki. I may not see you again.'

As he said this Gintoki's eyes widened._ What was the damn idiot saying? He was going to throw away a friendship of almost twenty years because of his cause? Did all they had gone through mean nothing at all?_

'What?' Was all he could voice out.

'Goodbye Gintoki.' Zura said after a slight pause. He had returned to looking outside the window.

Gintoki couldn't believe what was happening in front of him. Then something came to mind and he smiled, almost desperately.

'Zura, you idiot. Are you trying to blackmail me into joining you? It won't work.'

'I know. I have tried that before remember?'

'Then why?! If something is going on-'

'I cannot continue to associate with you when we no longer share the same goals. If I want to move this country forward I need to be focused on that and that alone. I cannot afford any distractions. That's all.'

_'You're calling your friends 'distractions'?' _Gintoki wondered in shock_._

Katsura looked at him for a moment before reaching for his hat.

'Farewell then.' He said quietly, proceding to walk out the door.

Gintoki fell silent at this. Instead of speaking, he took up his bowl of ramen and continued to eat.

'Zura, when you were saying goodbye why did you keep looking at the window? If you are going to leave forever, the least you can do is look into my damn face.' He said between mouthfuls.

Katsura stopped in his tracks and turned to him in surprise . He sighed purposefully and looked into Gintoki's almost dead looking red eyes.

'Good-'

BOOM!

The sound of a bazooka interrupted him and the two turned to see the Shinsengumi approaching.

'Die Katsura!' The Vice Commander Hijikata Toshirou shouted.


	2. Motives

Debris and smoke came flying as Katsura and Gintoki shielded their faces from the Shinsengumi's assault.

'Tch! Bakufu dogs.' Katsura muttered under his breath as he ran out the back.

'Zura!' Gintoki shouted after him.

'It's no use! You've been surrounded!' Hijikata yelled with a triumphant smile. He turned piercing blue eyes to the men behind him. 'Follow him! Make sure he doesn't escape!'

'Yes Vice Captain!' They shouted in unison, heading in the direction the freedom fighter had run off to.

As Gintoki watched them run off after his friend, he couldn't help but wonder at all that had occurred. He was snapped out of his musings, however, by a familiar 'click' sound around his hands.

'Eh?' He raised the aforementioned hands and stared at the shiny silver handcuffs that had been placed there. Hijikata gave him a smirk.

'You are under arrest.'

* * *

_'Everyone, this is Gintoki. He'll be joining us from today.'_

_'My name is Katsura. Katsura Kotarou. Nice to meet you.'_

* * *

'Keh, I should've known a pest like you would be having secret meetings with terrorists.' Hijikata sneered as he examined Gintoki from the other side of the interrogation table with his ever present cigarette in his mouth and a plate of odangos smeared with a generous helping of mayonnaise in front of him. Standing by his side was Okita Sougo, Captain of the 1st Division, who looked on with dancing reddish-brown eyes and a smug grin.

'Like I already said, I was having a late night meal when he showed up.' Gintoki repeated through low, bored eyes. 'Tch, I knew I should have just gone fishing instead.' He muttered to himself.

'Like hell that happened! You think I'm some kind of idiot huh?!' Hijikata demanded.

'Only idiots can turn odangos into dog shit!' Gintoki retorted, looking at the aforementioned odangos in disgust.

'What was that?!' The two butt their heads at each other and cringed their teeth.

'How long are you scumbags going to keep me here anyway?!' Gintoki demanded, examining the small room in irritation. It was extremely warm and claustrophobic and he had been in here for more than eight hours. To add insult to injury, the renowned chain-smoker had been smoking non-stop, making the room stuffy.

'You shouldn't expect to ever leave after what you did!'

'Why aren't the REAL police the ones interrogating me? At least they'll listen to sense!'

'We're not leaving terrorists like you in their hands.'

'TERRORISTS?!'

'Ah Hijikata-san, speaking of dog shit I forgot to tell you earlier...' Sougo began after a moment of silence prevailed in the room.

'What?!' Hijikata didn't turn away from Gintoki but Sougo continued anyway with what he was going to say. He pointed at the bottle of mayonnaise on the floor which Hijikata had used on his snack.

'That was the last bottle of mayonnaise.'

Silence.

'Hijikata-san?'

_Damn Yamazaki...I told him to buy more yesterday!_

The Vice Commander's eyes began to twitch.

_Stay. You have an interrogation to do! _

_Sougo can take over. Besides, if you don't go and check now, there won't be any mayonnaise for the sukiyaki you want to have later! _

'Are you feeling alright, Mayora-samurai?' Gintoki teased. Hijikata ignored him.

_Stay. _

_Go. _

_Stay. _

_Go! _

_Stay. _

_GOOOO!_

He raised himself up slowly and returned his gaze to Gintoki.

'Umm, excuse me. I'll be back soon.' He turned to Sougo. 'Sougo, take over.' With that he stormed out, leaving the two sadists alone in the room. Quick footsteps signaled his retreat.

'YAMAZAKI!' They heard him yell.

Gintoki mentally took in a deep breath as Sougo sat in Hijikata's place and leaned back in the chair, casually placing his arms behind his head.

'Katsura was able to get away from us. He used a hand bomb to scatter our forces and made his escape. Seriously, that guy has the lives of a cat.' He said.

'Is that so?' Gintoki asked with as much disinterest as he could muster. The younger samurai nodded his head

'We received a tip off that there would be a Joui meeting at that restaurant so we mounted surveillance.' He continued. Then he gazed into Gintoki's eyes. 'Boss, we've also been hearing multiple reports of Katsura involving himself in some suspicious activities.'

Gintoki felt his heart skip a beat. _No, that's not possible...just not possible...He would never go back..._

'I see.' Was all he said though he wondered why the brown haired sadist was informing him of this. Before he could think of asking, Hijikata returned with what looked like a bloody arm.

'Now then, where were we? Sougo, did you get anything out of him?'

'What can I say Hijikata-san? He's as tough as nails.'

'Is that so?'

'Umm...'

Gintoki had raised his hand prompting the two officers to turn sharply to him with surprise and curiosity on their faces.

'Hmm?'

'Can I have my phone call?'

'DO YOU THINK THIS IS A POLICE STATION OR SOMETHING?!'

* * *

_What the hell happened last night? He couldn't even look me in the eyes...that damn idiot!_

'Gin-san!'

'Gin-chan!'

Gintoki looked up as Shinpachi and Kagura ran up to the cell where he was being kept and knelt down in front of the bars.

'Be quick, we don't usually allow visitors into our cells. You have fifteen minutes.' Hijikata informed them before leaving and closing the door. The two turned to their leader with concerned expressions on their faces.

'Gin-san, what happened last night? This is the last place I thought you would be when I came in this morning.' Shinpachi started.

'Well...'

'Gin-chan probably got caught with his pants down in the women's toilet, ne Gin-chan?' Kagura responded with an all-knowing look on her cherubic face.

'Oi, what kind of guy do you think I am?' Gintoki wondered as Shinpachi shook his head.

'I'm sure it's all a misunderstanding and once we clear it up we can get you released.' He reasoned.

The two teenagers watched in astonishment as Gintoki's eyes briefly scanned the door that Hijikata had closed earlier checking whether it was properly shut before returning his attention to them.

'Gin-chan?'

'Shinpachi, Kagura...listen carefully...'

* * *

When the fifteen minute limit had elapsed, Yamazaki escorted the two teenagers out and promised to watch over the 'Boss' on their behalf. Shinpachi had noticed what looked like crusted blood in Yamazaki's nose and inquired about it.

'Oh this? It's nothing! I just tripped.' He said hastily in embarrassment as they reached the outside of the building.

'Stop looking at ladies' panties, you hear?' Kagura muttered as she started chewing on some sukonbu.

'That's not what happened!'

'Right, right.' She replied, disbelieving him. Shinpachi sighed and led her away.

'Some other time Yamazaki-san.'

'Yeah...'

After some hesitation the Shinsengumi officer returned indoors, leaving the two alone.

A quiet mood settled over them as they trudged slowly away, remembering their exchange with Gintoki when he had narrated what happened the other night.

_'Katsura-san did that? Strange!' Shinpachi had remarked._

_'There was something wrong with him. He wasn't even looking at me while he said all those things.' _

_'Do you think he was lying Gin-chan?'_

_Gintoki had looked down briefly in thought as he pondered the right answer to her question. He hadn't yet answered when Shinpachi added:_

_'Maybe he really meant it when he said that. Maybe he truly thinks we are distracting him from his cause...'_

_'You don't believe that anymore than I do.'_

_'Gin-san...'_

_Gintoki had looked at them then, his eyes full of purpose and determination._

_'Shinpachi, Kagura...I need you to find out what's going on. Don't do anything dangerous. I have a bad feeling about all this...'_

'Shinpachi, how are we going to go about this? Do you think Zura will tell us what we want to know?' Kagura asked. Shinpachi found himself shaking his head.

'If he didn't tell Gin-san, I don't see why he would tell us.' He said slowly, putting a hand to his chin as he pondered over some options.

'In the first place, we don't even know where to find him-'

'Oi Shinpachi-kun, China!'

The two turned round as Sougo came up from behind them.

'What the hell do you want?!' Kagura snapped before Shinpachi could ask. Sougo gave a wide smile, ignoring her tone and replied:

'Simple. I want to come with you.'


	3. Tensions

It wasn't easy being assistant to a combat-obsessed fighting machine, and when that combat-obsessed fighting machine was _bored_...Abuto couldn't help shaking his head as he cautiously walked behind his boss. Kamui hadn't explicitly _said _anything about being bored, but that in itself was the problem. His often-closed eyelids were now wide open, revealing intensely hungry, sharp blue eyes which darted from side to side while his hands occasionally twitched with impatience.

Whenever he was like this, it didn't matter who you were...so long as you were strong enough to provide him with the thrill of a good fight., he would fight you. With this in mind, Abuto planned to stay as far out of his sight as he possibly could. Though it was highly unlikely, he didn't want Kamui fighting _him._

He was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard his captain come to an abrupt stop in front of him.

'Captain?'

Kamui said nothing in response, prompting Abuto to seek out what had caught his attention. He inwardly sighed as he noticed Takasugi Shinsuke's right hand man, Kawakami Bansai approaching them. Abuto's gaze drifted back to Kamui, who quietly watched as Bansai approached and came to a halt in front of them.

'Ah, Admiral Kamui, Matako was looking around for you.' He said casually.

_Admiral Kamui._ Abuto found himself being reminded once again that Kamui was now the de-facto leader of the Harusame pirates now that Admiral Aho-... ahem, Admiral Abou was dead. Still, it was a pain to call him that so he preferred to stick with 'Captain'. Kamui didn't seem to mind...

'Oh?' Kamui replied with a smile. Bansai nodded slowly, hearing him even with those annoying headphones covering his ears. Speaking of which, why did he always have them on?

'Shinsuke is the one who sent her. I suppose he wishes to speak with you on something.'

Kamui's hands twitched and this caught the blue haired samurai's attention. Abuto noticed Bansai's stance changing slightly in response.

He was probably right to be wary and Kamui's smile only widened.

'Then I should go see him, shouldn't I?'

'Yes, you should I daresay.'

Kamui took on a combat stance as he examined the samurai in front of him, a look of glee spreading across his pretty boy face.

'You know, you were the first samurai I had ever seen, that day when you came to negotiate for our help against the Bakufu. It only makes sense that we should battle at least once, don't you think?'

Bansai shrugged.

'Perhaps I would have indulged you, if we had not been allies.'

'Allies? On the battlefield, allies and enemies are the same to me. All I ever want...is to follow my blood.'

Abuto figured he'd better stop it now before he lost another arm interrupting a full out battle...

'Captain, this could cause complications. Think for a second dammit. Think of how Takasugi will respond if you kill one of his best men!' Kamui turned to look at him briefly from the corner of his eye before returning his attention to the samurai in front of him.

'Kill him Abuto? No, no, I just plan to fight him...and possibly maim him, but not kill him! Tsk, tsk.' He replied, to his lieutenant's irritation.

'As if that's any different, idiot-'

'Boredom brings out the worst in you doesn't it, Kamui?' A voice remarked, prompting them all to turn to its source.

Takasugi had entered the hallway with Kijima Matako following behind him. With his entrance, Bansai relaxed his stance and Kamui's eyes narrowed in irritation.

'Ah, Takasugi, ruining my fun are you?'

Takasugi chuckled.

'It seems I'm going to have to find a leash for whenever you get bored.' He teased.

Kamui smiled and relaxed his stance, standing upright. 'You should know by now that leashes can't hold me back.' He remarked, approaching the man he had sworn to fight...but only after the world had burned to dust.

It was because of this that Abuto had no doubt that at the very least, Takasugi was one of the few who would be able to get through to him. The dark haired war veteran turned his olive green eyes to Bansai, who didn't look bothered at all by what had occurred.

'Bansai...'

'Ah. I'll get back to my business.' With that he walked off as casually as he had come into the darker reaches of the ship. After he was gone, Kamui returned his attention to Takasugi, a curious glint now gleaming in his deep blue eyes.

'So then, why did you want to see me?' He asked.

The one eyed samurai beckoned for him to follow him and led the way out. Kamui gave Abuto a look which the older warrior knew to mean he should remain, so Abuto did just that and watched as his captain and Takasugi went away to talk.

'What a pain in the ass...'

* * *

'How long are you tax robbers going to keep me here?' Gintoki yelled from behind his bars as an officer brought him his lunch. Hijikata was not too far from them, leaning on a wall by the door and he took out a cigarette from his pocket.

'For as long as you keep insisting you don't know Katsura or aren't connected in any way with the Jouishishi, _Shiroyasha.' _Hijikata replied nonchalantly as he lit the cigarette with his lighter. After exhaling some smoke, he turned his cold eyes to the imprisoned man in front of him. A cruel smile adorned his face as he asked:

'What's the matter? Missing your parfaits?'

'Bastard...'

The Vice Commander just shrugged his shoulders.

'Well, if you want to leave so badly, you know what to do.' He said simply, exiting the room and leaving Gintoki by himself.

Gintoki banged the cell bars in frustration before giving a deep sigh and lying against the wall, his eyes gazing distantly at the ceiling. He hated being alone sometimes...especially in circumstances like this. His mind was straying into past memories before he even knew it. One memory in particular started to play over and over again.

_It was after one of their victories, when they had successfully repelled an Amanto advance. The rebels had celebrated briefly before turning in to rest, too weary and deprived of energy to fully express their joy. _

_Gintoki, however, found he couldn't sleep so he decided to take a walk around until he would get tired enough. It was as he was walking outside, taking in the desolate atmosphere around him, that he noticed a lone figure sitting under a tree and approached to get a closer view. The first thing he noticed was the person's natural perm, similar to his, causing him to smile slightly._

_'Tatsuma.'_

_Sakamoto turned slightly in surprise at hearing his name but when he realized who had called him, he relaxed and smiled warmly._

_'Oh, Gintoki, can't sleep?' He asked as Gintoki came up and sat next to him._

_'I should be asking you that question.' Came the reply. Sakamoto shrugged his shoulders slightly._

_'I sometimes come here to clear my thoughts, that's all.'_

_'Thoughts?'_

_'Yeah...' At this the brown haired samurai sighed and motioned to the remnants of the battle they had won. 'We had a decisive victory today. Everyone is happy about that but...'_

_'You have mixed feelings?'_

_'I guess I do. __Just thinking about the countless people that died here. How long can we keep this up?' He wondered gravely._

_Gintoki had looked down at that, for those sentiments mirrored his own and he didn't have an answer for them. When Tatsuma realized he wouldn't get a response he continued._

_'I guess I shouldn't be so thoughtful.' Gintoki shook his head._

_'No, there's nothing wrong with that. That's just how you are, always looking at the future.'_

_'What are you guys doing here?' A voice asked, causing them to turn and see Takasugi and Katsura walking up to them._

_'Takasugi, Zura...'_

_'It's not Zura, it's Katsura.' Came the automatic response._

_Gintoki realized they were waiting for a response to Takasugi's earlier question and scoffed._

_'What, we can't come out and enjoy a bit of fresh air without you asking us questions?'_

_'There's nothing fresh about this air.' Takasugi deadpanned to Gintoki's irritation._

_'Well, what are YOU guys doing here?' Gintoki returned._

_'We realized you two were missing and came to check if you were here, moron.'_

_'Who are you calling a moron, pipsqueak?'_

_'What was that?!'_

_Katsura sighed, catching their attention. He was also looking out at the field in front of them._

_'What a sad victory.' He mused, almost to himself._

_'Ahahahaha! So, you feel the same way, Katsura?'_

_'It's not Katsura, it's- whoa!' Katsura had turned his gaze to Sakamoto now, seemingly shocked that he had been called rightly. He seemed to notice something in happy-go-lucky samurai's face for he asked:_

_'Is everything okay, Tatsuma?'_

_Sakamoto had laughed off his concern but Katsura wasn't fooled. He joined them on the floor and folded his arms in his haori._

_'Maybe, just maybe, one day all of this will make more sense. The ideals that those who died today fought for will be realized.' He said softly._

_'Those ideals will not bring them back.' Gintoki almost spat._

_'No, no it won't...'_

_'Don't be such wussies.' Takasugi had scolded, prompting them to turn to him in unison._

_'Takasugi...'_

_'These men were willing to die for our country to be free. They knew what the risks were when they joined. The only way to properly see them off is to win this war and make sure their sacrifices were not in vain. You think if we stopped now it would make us or them any happier?'_

_'That's cold.' Sakamoto had replied angrily, surprising both Gintoki and Katsura._

_'But it is what it is.'_

_An awkward silence settled over them for a while but thankfully it was interrupted when Katsura began shuffling for something in his pocket, catching their attention._

_'I think I know something that will cheer us up...' He said._

_'Hmm?'_

_'UNO!' He replied happily, as he brought out some cards. _

_Sakamoto and Gintoki couldn't help the smiles that came to their faces and Takasugi had sighed. They knew Katsura was trying to do._

_'Sure, whatever.'_

_So they had spent the rest of the night playing UNO, temporarily forgetting their worries and living in the moment. Gintoki had, at some point in the game, looked at Katsura and inwardly smiled at just how good he could be sometimes at diffusing the atmosphere with his silly games._

_'Zura...' He had said. The raven haired samurai had turned to him then._

_'What is it, Gintoki?'_

_'You'd better not die on us, okay?'_

_'Huh?' Katsura and the others had been surprised at his question but Gintoki hadn't elaborated, even when he had been asked._

The memory ended and Gintoki found himself sighing again. 'Mataku...' He whispered.

Outside, the Commander of the Shinsengumi, Kondo Isao, met up with Hijikata, who was still smoking.

'How's the interrogation going, Toshi?' He asked his deputy. Hijikata exhaled some smoke slowly before answering.

'He's not talking although, I doubt he was participating in any Joui activities.'

'I see. Keep interrogating him anyway.'

'Hmm?'

Kondo shrugged and elaborated.

'It would be suspicious of us to let go of someone who was in the same room as Katsura when we were told he was going to have a meeting. If it had been anyone other than the Yorozuya, we'd probably be torturing him by now to get the facts.' Hijikata nodded in understanding.

'That's true. Okay, Kondo-san, we'll keep him here a bit longer then.'

'Good, good.' He said patting the younger man's shoulders and walking away. The Vice-Commander found himself looking at Kondo's retreating frame, though he did not know why.

* * *

Elizabeth entered Katsura's room as he was looking out the window and held up a sign. Katsura turned round.

I'M GOING SHOPPING. WE'VE RUN OUT OF SOME THINGS

'Oh, is that so Elizabeth? Okay, but don't spend too much time outside.' The penguin-duck nodded and held up another sign.

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU WANT ME TO BUY FOR YOU?

'No, thank you. I'm okay.'

ARE YOU SURE KATSURA-SAN? YOU SEEM UNHAPPY TODAY, LIKE YOUR SHAMPOO HAS FINISHED OR SOMETHING

Katsura smiled slightly.

'There's still plenty of shampoo and conditioner left, no worries.'

OKAY, KATSURA-SAN. I'LL BE BACK SOON

With that, he walked out. Katsura's smile faded and he returned to viewing the outside of his window. A question was reverberating throughout his mind as he quietly watched the clouds moving in the sky.

_What am I doing?_


	4. Questions

**A/N: Hi to all reviewers (Yato Rumi, Lucky kittens, Choc- Chip Kuki, love at third sight, lany-chan, guest and gintama200), 'favouriters', followers and other readers, sorry for the late update. It's just that I've been very busy and didn't have much time to write. Please enjoy, and let me know what you think! :)**

* * *

'You want to come with us, Okita-san? To where exactly?' Shinpachi asked the maroon-eyed sadist who crossed his arms in response.

'To search for Katsura, of course.' He finally answered, to their surprise and increasing horror. Kagura was the first to react as she snickered at her arch-nemesis' response.

'Oi what drugs are you on, you sadistic bastard?' She remarked, effectively hiding her dismay. Behind her Shinpachi nodded his head fervently, still too shocked to do anything else. His mind was racing, wondering how the Shinsengumi captain even knew of their connection to the Joui patriot and their intentions. _Does that mean I'll be put in jail? Does it mean I'll stay a virgin till the day I die?!_

'Heh, the only one on drugs here is you, China!' Came the swift reply as the two began to butt heads with each other, completely oblivious to Shinpachi's antics. The megane broke out of his thoughts and turned his attention to the two rivals.

'Stop it you two! Fighting won't get us anywhere!' He reprimanded, coming in between them and managing to pull them apart. Sougo began dusting his sleeve as if dirt had come on it. An angry vein popped on Kagura's head and it looked like she would say something but Shinpachi checked her with a look before turning his full attention to Sougo.

'Okita-san, we honestly don't know what you're talking about and we've no intentions of-'

'Yeah, yeah, yeah. No need to be all formal.' Okita interrupted brusquely. 'Especially when you're lying.' He added coldly.

When the two Yorozuya said nothing in response, he shook his head and turned away from them, smiling to himself.

'I know about the conversation you had with the _Danna_. He wants you to find Katsura and ask him what's going on, right? Well, let's just say I also have an interest in finding out certain things.'

'And just how could you have eavesdropped on us when the DOORS were closed?' Kagura pointed out through clenched teeth, as she resisted the urge to pummel his face in. Sougo scoffed, uncaring of her restraint.

'Please. I know the ins and outs of all our prison cells. Nothing can be hidden from me when I want to know something.'

He leaned closer until he was only a few inches from her face. To her credit, she didn't flinch as he stared down at her. Her azure eyes gazed into his maroon as he continued to speak.

'That means that not only do I know for sure of the Danna's ties to Katsura, I also know that he really WAS meeting with him yesterday night.'

They stared at each other for what seemed like hours. All of a sudden, Shinpachi felt as if the two were in another world entirely and he was an outsider. There was an awkward, tense silence that he felt would choke him if it continued for much longer. The two rivals didn't seem to notice his unease, however, for they kept glaring at each other, almost as if to relent would mean losing some imaginary competition.

Shinpachi sighed, almost to himself, and decided to intervene.

'Umm...' He began, only for the two to turn sharply to him.

'SHUT UP MEGANE!'

'Oiiiii!' Shinpachi reared back slightly at their retort. _Why am I always mistaken for my glasses!? _He wondered as he watched Kagura and Okita abandon their glare competition and begin to argue vehemently with each other.

Having had enough, the megane clenched his fists and knocked them both squarely on the head.

'Hey!'

'OUCH!'

'You two are worse than children! This is a serious situation so stop arguing like you've got nothing better to do!' He scolded, as they nursed the growing bumps on their heads. When it seemed they had relented in their argument, he turned to Okita. He was still a bit apprehensive about the consequences of allowing him to join them in their search but he figured that if they didn't allow him to come along he would just arrest them... or worse. _  
_

'Okita-san, how do you expect us to allow you to come with us when you are an enemy of the Jouishishi?' He asked.

Okita smirked at this and gazed at Shinpachi with what looked to be new found respect.

'Now, you're asking the right questions.' He commended.

'Well?'

'Don't worry, I don't plan on going EVERYWHERE with you. But there are ways that I can help speed-track your search.' As he said this he pointed his thumb backwards to his patrol car.

'Come on, I'll give you all the info that I know when we're inside.'

* * *

'You seem to be in a good mood today, Captain.' Abuto found himself remarking to the now smiling Kamui as they patrolled the streets of Edo in the evening. Many of the women blushed and smiled as they passed by, though Kamui didn't seem to notice them. He wondered what Takasugi had told the bloodthirsty Yato to get him into such high spirits especially when he had been in a completely opposite mood only a few hours earlier.

His Captain laughed at his comment and opened his eyes briefly.

'You would be happy too, Abuto, if you knew that very soon...you would be getting what you've wanted for a long, long time.' He replied.

Abuto didn't know what to make of this, but he smiled as well. It sounded like there would be battle soon for that was the only thing he could think of that would make his Captain so excited. He could feel a similar excitement igniting within him. Yatos both loved and belonged on the battlefield and he was no exception.

* * *

_Where the hell is Sougo, dammit_

Hijikata couldn't help but wander as he and Kondo stood in front of the Shinsengumi units. Okita's position in front of his unit was conspicuously absent but the demonic Vice-Commander decided to think little of it as Kondo began to give them a briefing.

'Listen up guys. We've received some disturbing reports about recent Jouishishi activity and have reason to believe that either Katsura or Takasugi are getting ready for a showdown in Edo that could very well change the course of history if we don't do something about it first.' The Commander declared.

Unlike the usual case where some officers could be seen talking and chatting while the Commander was briefing them, everyone listened to him with rapt attention. Perhaps the seriousness of the matter had not gone unnoticed. Hijikata nodded in approval and found himself turning to his Commander as well. Kondo had been in a serious mood of late, probably due to the reports he had received from the 3rd Unit Captain, Saitou Shimaru, and as he continued to talk Hijikata was reminded why he admired him so much. Granted, there were times when he questioned Kondo's actions, but he never doubted his strength.

He cursed inwardly when he realised his mind was moving elsewhere and focused on what his Commander was saying.

'We will need to be very vigilant within the next few days. If anyone notices anything suspicious, report it immediately. Our heads are on the line if anything happens to the Bakufu.'

'Yes, Commander!'

When the meeting had ended, Hijikata remained with Kondo and they both watched as the officers filed out of the room, all joviality now lost from their faces in the wake of the bad news they had received. When everyone had exited, Kondo turned his attention to his deputy.

'Toshi.'

'Kondo-san?'

'You'll need to be on the lookout as well. We could do with your skills of observation at a time like this.'

Hijikata nodded his head slowly and debated whether to speak out on one of his 'observations' to his superior.

'Kondo-san, you've been very serious of late.' He remarked.

'Ah, is that so?'

Hijikata nodded again, noticing what looked to be lines of fatigue on his Commander's usually jovial face. He wondered why he hadn't noticed it earlier.

'Is something wrong?'

Kondo smiled but shook his head slowly.

'I guess I'm just worried; If we aren't careful, we could lose a lot of our men.' He turned fully to the younger samurai. 'We need to get as much information as we possibly can in the shortest amount of time. That could make a big difference!'

'Understood, Commander. I'll focus more of our spies on information gathering.'

'You do that, Toshi.'

Taking this as permission to leave, Hijikata inclined his head and rose to leave. Kondo stopped him before he could go.

'Ah, and how's the interrogation with the Yorozuya going?'

'Still nothing. He's as stubborn as an ox. How long do you want us to keep him?'

Kondo crossed his arms slowly.

'Till you get something out of him.'

'Eh? Then he'll never leave!'

* * *

'I'm not sure what you guys already know, so I'll just start from the top.' Sougo began as he drove Shinpachi and Kagura through town. Shinpachi was in the front seat while Kagura was at the back sitting directly behind Sougo. Both were silent as the Shinsengumi captain spoke.

'We began to get suspicious when we noticed disguised ronin patrolling the streets. As to who they're working for we aren't sure yet. It could be either Takasugi or Katsura but either way, that's trouble for everyone in this town. At first we thought with certainty that it wouldn't be Katsura since he's become somewhat more of a moderate but...'

'But what?' Shinpachi asked, unable to disguise the worry in his voice.

'We received reports that he was planning on returning to his former ways-'

'There's no way Zura would do that!' Kagura interrupted in disbelief. 'It's Takasugi, no doubt about it! So stop focusing on Zura, and do us all a favour and keep your eye on someone else!'

'That's true Okita-san! He would never hurt the people of this town!'

Okita didn't respond immediately. In fact, he was silent for at least a minute, leaving Shinpachi and Kagura to look at each other. Had he even heard them?

'Oi-'

'You guys seem to be really attached to him.' He finally replied, and they realised their mistake.

'Uh...'

'Don't worry, I won't arrest you or anything. We'll just pretend you never said that.' The 1st Division captain remarked, keeping his eyes on the road.

'Okita-san...'

'I guess that's what makes Takasugi a worse opponent. He can't be reasoned with and he doesn't have people like you to keep him in line either.' He reached into his pocket and put something in Shinpachi's hand. Shinpachi opened it and looked at what seemed to be badges- one like a flower and the other like a mayonnaise bottle.

'Hmm? What are these for?' Shinpachi wondered as Kagura leaned forward to have a look. 'Kagura-chan, put your seat-belt on!'

'Aww leave me alone, mum!'

'What was that?!'

Sougo sighed at their antics and took the flower badge from Shinpachi and handed it to Kagura.

'Those are communication badges. That way when we separate we can keep tabs on each other.'

'Keh, are you giving me a flower? How sweeet!' Kagura mocked as she took the flower badge from his hand and pinned it to her dress.

'Yeah, yeah, I hope you stab you're eye while putting it on.'

'I'll stab YOU first!'

Shinpachi cleared his throat dramatically to end their exchange and returned his attention to Sougo.

'So you want us to separate and search the whole town for Katsura-san? That could take forever especially if he doesn't want to be found.'

A small smile began to appear on Sougo's face.

'No, not Katsura.'

'Hmm?'

'You two need to look for that duck-penguin thing he's always with. Now THAT's a creature that can't hide in plain sight no matter how hard it tries.'

* * *

'It seems you were able to convince the Admiral to calm down.' Bansai remarked as he and Takasugi were playing their shamisens. The room was filled with its beautiful sounds. Bansai had a knack for sounds; he could hear the sounds that people made just by looking at them. As he looked at Shinsuke, he saw many things, things that he wouldn't say out loud to anyone else, except maybe to Shinsuke himself.

A small smile crept onto Shinsuke's lips at Bansai's remark.

'I simply told him want he wanted to hear. He and I share the same blood lust, even if our motivations are different.' Bansai nodded his head in agreement with this.

'Yes, I've noticed. He must be over the moon then, I daresay.'

Takasugi snickered but didn't say anything in response, only continued playing. As the room was once again filled with the music they played, Bansai wondered if a certain silver haired samurai would try disrupt their plans once again.

_Looking forward to it_

* * *

'Senpai, do you think we can succeed with our plans?' Matako found herself asking Takechi Henpeita who was looking at some maps.

'Any plan can succeed as long as it is done well and all possible disruptions are dealt with.' He answered, slowly, with his eyes still on the maps he was examining.

'Disruptions?'

'Yes...disruptions.' He replied patiently, finally putting them away and looking at her fully.

'Our aim is to destroy the Bakufu so naturally, the Shinsengumi would be counted as distractions. Also, the Tendoshu who are the real power behind the Bakufu can be seen to be distractions. But so far, the worst distractions have been Takasugi-sama's comrades; Sakata Gintoki and Katsura Kotarou!'

'So why don't we kill them?! How many times are we going to wait for those two to butt their heads in and ruin our plans?'

'Ask Takasugi-sama, not me. If I had my way, they'd both be dead. Especially that silver samurai.'

Matako's eyes narrowed.

'Yeah, yeah. So you can help yourself to that annoying little tramp who follows him eh? You're such a lolicon, senpai!'

'I'm not a lolicon, I'm a feminist.'

'Why haven't you helped yourself to the Harusame Admiral who looks so much like her?'

'What do you take me for? I prefer ladies thank you very much.'

'The both of you need not worry.' A voice behind them said. They turned to see Bansai approaching.

'Bansai-dono...'

'This time around, we'll be taking care of anything and everything that gets in our way.'


	5. Anguish

They had thought it would be easy finding Elizabeth, after all like Okita-san had said, it would be hard for people NOT to notice someone with features like that. Well...they were wrong. After leaving Sougo behind in the patrol car, he and Kagura had agreed to split up to cover more ground. That had been over three hours ago, and Shinpachi was beginning to wonder if they would ever find him (or her?) within the little time that they had. Just as he began to contemplate giving up, he heard a slight cackle coming from his mayonnaise-shaped communicator thingy (Why was it shaped that way anyway?) and turned to it curiously. He had almost forgotten that he had it on.

_'How's it going?'_ Came Okita's voice over the static. Shinpachi raised the communicator closer to his mouth.

'It's no use Okita-san, no one seems to have seen her around.' He replied. After a slight pause, Okita's voice spoke up again.

_'What about you China?'_

_'I'm checking all the places Eli goes to but n_othing yet, aru.'__ Came Kagura's reply.

__'I see...'__

'Elizabeth-san could be anywhere at this rate. Maybe we should call it a night and try again tomorrow.' Shinpachi mused. Kagura seemed to agree with him.

_'I'm really hungry! At this rate I'll eat Sadaharu...'_

_'ARF!'_

__'Just kidding Sadaharu! You know I won't do that-'__

'Oiiii! Why is Sadaharu there? When did he join up with you? Did you stop searching for Elizabeth-san and go back to the house?!'

_'Well, I got hungry so I went to get something to eat.'_

'And yet you're still hungry? What's with this bottomless pit you have for a stomach?!'

Sougo harrumphed.

_'Alright you two, quit it. We don't have the luxury of time so you need to keep searching-'_

_'Then why don't you join us instead of sitting down and ordering us around, idiot?'_

_'Are you TRYING to make this harder for yourself?'_

_'Hmph!'_

Shinpachi sighed for possibly the millionth time that day before resigning himself to his fate. He'd rather keep searching till his feet bled than listen to the two bickering with each other over and over again.

'Let's get this over with. An hour more and we can call it quits.' He suggested.

_'Fine.'_

_'Alright! Then we can eat!'_

_'Arf!'_

* * *

(**A/N: I'm sticking to describing Elizabeth as a guy since I'm sure we've all seen Eli's hairy legs, often commented old man personality and most of all...his appearance in the second movie. No lady can get a body like that!)**

* * *

Elizabeth was what you would call...a quiet person, a man who rarely spoke without using his sign boards. It was for this reason that he was very observant and so even though he hadn't said it out loud, he had long noticed the change in his companion's demeanour. Katsura had been quick to deny that there were any problems and insisted he was fine, but Eli knew him too well.

So he had told the long haired samurai that he was going shopping. Except he wasn't going shopping. Instead, the Amanto had waited outside their hideout, away from view, to see if anything would happen in his absence. It took time, the sun which had been shining in all its glory had now set in the distance but it eventually paid off when Katsura came out in his monk disguise and headed off. He melded easily into the background of people as he casually but briskly walked along the streets of Edo. That a wanted man like him could go undetected for as long as he had was a testament to his abilities. In spite of how unguarded he appeared, Elizabeth knew to tread carefully in following him, for he was most likely on high alert.

He trailed Katsura at a safe distance, far enough that the sound of him waddling as he walked with his webbed feet would not be picked up by the raven haired samurai's sharp ears.

He did not know what had been tormenting his friend over the past few days but he was determined to not let Katsura go through it alone.

* * *

_Towards the end of the war it became an unrelenting chain of losing battles with victories coming farther and farther in-between. The men's spirits were lower than they had ever been and most had accepted the cruel fact that they had lost and that they would never be able to avenge their comrades. At this point those who had not left were either those who had nothing to go back to, or like Takasugi, those who could not accept the changing world that had moved on when they could not._

_Katsura found himself struggling to maintain the little that remained of the men's morale, whilst at the same time trying to formulate new strategies that could turn the tide, an almost impossible task._

_As he sat in his tent mulling over some battle plans to distract himself from the gloomy atmosphere, he heard the flap opening from behind and turned sideways to see Shiroyasha entering with his hands behind his back._

_'Gintoki...'_

_'Zura, what's with the serious face? Eh, scratch that, you're always serious. Want me to bring in a nice widowed lady to cheer you up?'_

_'It's not Zura, it's Katsura.' He replied mechanically, raising one of the papers he had been examining for the white haired man to see. 'And there's no time for that. I'm going through some battle plans.' He added._

_Gintoki had looked apathetically at them with his red eyes now becoming more and more like that of a dead fish. Silently, he took a seat in front of his long time friend and placed two saucers in front of them. Then he brought out a small jug full of what Katsura suspected to be sake and started pouring it out onto them._

_'Gintoki, there's no time for-'_

_'Zura.'_

_Katsura stared at his comrade, surprised at his serious tone. As he looked into his friend's face he realised just how much the war had affected him. His often carefree eyes now seemed burdened with a deep, inner anguish as one by one he had failed in protecting those he had come to take as comrades. Of those who remained, Sakamoto had left the war to go into space whilst Takasugi had fallen out with Gintoki over...that._

_The raven haired samurai had sighed then and accepted the sake that Gintoki poured out for him. He took a sip and relished its taste as it went down his parched throat._

_Gintoki gave him a small smile before helping himself to some as well._

_'You like putting the burdens of the world on your shoulder, Zura. Sometimes, you need to let others help you.' He said softly._

_Katsura scoffed._

_'You're one to talk; Don't think I haven't noticed how you've been feeling lately. Even Shiroyasha has limits, you know.'_

_Gintoki had looked down at that. His silver bangs covered his eyes so that only the trace of a smile on his face was now visible._

_'You're right. Even I have limits.' He murmured._

_'Gintoki...'_

_'Zura...I can't take any more of THIS.'_

_Katsura hadn't known what to say then. Men were bad at comforting one another, so he had just taken another sip of his sake instead. When they had both emptied their saucers, he took the jug and refilled them. They had continued drinking into the night._

_The next day, Shiroyasha was gone._

All of this was flying through Katsura's mind as he walked to his destination. He wondered if he should have followed Gintoki's path and chosen to live in obscurity in a world he despised. He shook his head. There was no way he could have done that, he was the kind of person who would go down with his ship. All the same, he understood and respected Gintoki's decision, more so after they had met again after all those years and after he had met with Ikumatsu.

But he also found himself empathising with Takasugi, who like him, could not live peacefully in the new world, wanted as they were. They would never find peace. That was why they could not afford to go back until the Bakufu had been destroyed. Maybe after that...

He looked up at the moon which gleamed beautifully in the sky, just like it had when he had met up with Gintoki yesterday. He wondered how he was doing.

Katsura was snapped out of his musings as he saw the person he had come to meet. The person had been leaning on a wall outside one of the shops but stood straight when he saw him and came over.

'Let's go.' The man said simply.

Katsura nodded and followed the man as he led them away.

'Will he be available this evening?' Katsura asked him. The man nodded his head.

'I believe he will have enough time for someone like you, _de gozaru.'_


	6. Trust

Shinpachi was now trudging slowly as he moved forward, too tired to walk quickly. It was now so late that very few people were walking about and there was an almost eerie silence in the area. His mind continued to provide all kinds of excuses for him to give up and turn back before the agreed hour had elapsed.

_I am tired as hell. My feet ache, I'm sleepy and so, so hungry._

These words became his mantra and he finally decided to give up. What was the rush anyway? One night would not make much of a difference, right?

With this in mind he raised the communicator close to his mouth and decided to speak his mind. Okita-san would just have to accept that they were too tired to continue. But that was when he saw it. He stopped dead in his tracks. No, he couldn't be imagining this, he rubbed his eyes and blinked twice just to be sure. But the sight which had stopped him cold was still there.

That long raven hair, straw hat and black garb could only belong to one person. He watched in dumbfounded shock as Katsura and another man, whom he did not recognise, walked into an alleyway. Rather than finding Elizabeth they had found Katsura-san! Shinpachi was about to run up and catch their attention when he felt arms holding him back and stopping his advance.

'Let go of me!' He yelled, causing the person restraining him to use one of his hands to cover his mouth. Even though the person was only using one arm now to hold him back he still struggled to free himself against the herculean grip. After some more tossing he finally managed to release himself and turned aggressively to face his would-be captor.

His eyes widened as he recognised the person's unique features.

'Elizabeth-san?'

The Amanto nodded and raised up a sign.

NO TIME TO TALK. LET'S FOLLOW THEM.

'Follow them?' Shinpachi was confused at this. Why was Elizabeth trailing Katsura when they were often always side by side? Respecting Elizabeth's request for silence, however, he kept his thoughts to himself and nodded in acquiescence. They then entered the alley they had seen the two men entering previously and followed quietly.

It took about ten minutes of continuous walking before the buildings began to thin out and they approached what looked to be an empty port. Not wanting to get closer, Shinpachi and Elizabeth hid themselves behind some containers and watched as Katsura and Bansai walked up to a ship which had docked there.

'Whose ship is that?' Shinpachi wondered. Elizabeth shook his head, obviously not knowing the answer to his question. They continued to look on as the two figures got onto the ship and met up with what seemed to be another person. Shinpachi squinted, trying to see who they were speaking with, but they were now too far away. He grunted in frustration and knew he would have to find a way to get closer. He looked around for any obstacles that might allow him to do this without getting seen and saw some crates which had been stacked, one on the other.

'Elizabeth-san, I'm going closer to get a better look.' He told the Amanto next to him. Elizabeth raised up a sign almost immediately.

BE CAREFUL, DON'T GET CAUGHT!

Shinpachi smiled and then nodded his head decisively before taking off at a quick pace to where the crates were located. He managed to get behind them without being detected and peeked out to see what was going on. Now that he was closer, he had a better view and could see the three figures more clearly.

His eyes widened when he finally saw who the third person was. The bandages covering his left eye were easily as discernible as his purple yukata.

He remembered the first time he had met that man...Katsura had almost sliced through his stomach. And yet, here they were _talking to each other?_

__Katsura-san...what, what are you doing? __He wondered

His shock multiplied even more when another man joined them. His vermilion hair and blue eyes gave him away instantly and Shinpachi felt his a knot forming in his stomach.

Now fully aware of the dangerous company they had stumbled upon, his body was trembling in fear. He knew he had to get away as quickly as possible and inform the others of what he had seen. He wondered if Gintoki would even believe him...

Just as he was thinking this, Kamui made his way off the ship and was heading towards town. He and his men passed not far from where Shinpachi was hiding so he caught a few snippets of their conversation.

'So many samurai to satisfy my hunger tonight. I hope they'll be fun.' Kamui was saying with a disconcerting smile on his face. The tall man next to him...Abuto, Shinpachi remembered him all too well. After all he was the reason Kagura had...

Unaware of the attention he was receiving, Abuto smiled at his captain.

'I believe the infamous 'Bakufu dogs' will try to give us a good fight.' He replied.

Shinpachi couldn't believe his ears. He had to get back NOW!

When they had gone, he rushed back to where Elizabeth was waiting. The white duck-penguin seemed to notice his agitation and looked at him expectantly.

'Let's get back, Elizabeth-san! This place...this place is too dangerous!'

WHAT ABOUT KATSURA-SAN?

The young samurai lowered his head sadly. How to explain this...

'We can't do anything for him now. We need to get Gin-san and Kagura-chan here. Let's get somewhere safe so I can use my communicator-'

'Oi!'

They both turned sharply as two men with lanterns came across them. Both had their swords drawn.

'What are you doing here?' One of them asked. The other pointed at Shinpachi in recognition.

'This kid was part of those who came on to the ship and ruined our Benizakura plans! Come to try and stop us again, have you?!'

_'We've been caught!'_

Shinpachi took out his sword and readied his stance. He may not be a demon or a monster like Gin-san or Kagura-chan, but he could hold his own.

'Get out of our way.' He warned.

They only laughed at his response and attacked head on. In a second, Shinpachi had cut them down. The noise seemed to attract more of the patrol, however, and they came rushing in to apprehend them.

'Dammit.' Shinpachi swore uncharacteristically. He needed to inform the others of what was going to happen as quickly as possible!

Suddenly, what looked like a cannon came out of Elizabeth's mouth and fired at the approaching men, creating an opening. The Amanto raised a sign.

GET GOING. I WON'T LEAVE WITHOUT KATSURA-SAN

'But Eliza-'

Hearing more noises to his side, he was horrified to see more men approaching.

'Get them!'

Elizabeth fired a few more shots and raised another sign.

QUICKLY! I'LL COVER YOUR ESCAPE

'But...' He was cut off by another sign.

NOW!

Realising he couldn't change the Amanto's mind, he reluctantly nodded his head and took off.

'I'll be back with help!' He promised, taking off with as much speed as he could muster. Three men suddenly attempted to stop him and came in his way.

'Where do you think you're-'

BLAST!

More blasts came in quick succession, giving Shinpachi the chance to escape. He was tired, but that was the last thing on his mind as he raced to get back to the others. As he left the port, the sounds of cannon fire suddenly died down, letting him know that his friend had been caught. He felt his arms clenching at his sides.

_Elizabeth-san, I'll make this up to you I promise!_

When he got to a safe enough distance he grabbed his communicator and pressed the button.

* * *

Sougo had been waiting in the patrol car when Kagura came up on Sadaharu. He smirked slightly at them and placed his elbow on the car window.

'You're the first to return, why am I not surprised? You ARE aware the hour we agreed on hasn't elapsed yet?' He wondered, as she got off the giant dog's back. She only crossed her arms in response and came closer.

'We need to talk, Sadist.' She said.

'Oh? Are you finally tired of this life and want me to help you along to the other world?' The officer asked, through bored eyes. She ignored his comment and decided to continue with what she wanted to say.

'You seem to have more of an interest in this than I thought with the way you want us to continue searching so badly.' She remarked.

'I've already told you that I have business with your friend.'

'And why can't it wait? You've been very impatient, as if you feel you don't have much time.'

'Well, technically I am AWOL right now.'

She shook her head.

'As if that's ever stopped you before.'

Sougo's eyes narrowed slightly. Was she reading him now? For some reason that really irritated him and he attempted to brush her off.

'It's none of your concern China.' He almost spat. 'Why don't you mind your own business?'

'Pfft! Says the guy who was eavesdropping on our private conversation.' She sneered. She leaned in closer until they were only inches apart.

'Tell me what's going on! I don't like being in the dark, especially when I'm being _used_.'

He crossed his arms, letting her know that he wasn't intimidated and she harrumphed before kicking the car door, causing a dent.

'Hey, don't let me arrest you for damaging public property, little girl!'

'Just try!'

_'KAGURA-CHAN, OKITA-SAN!'_ Came Shinpachi's anxious voice, diverting their attention.

'Shinpachi?' Kagura's responded, worried at his tone.

_'THE SHINSENGUMI ARE GOING TO BE ATTACKED! YOUR-!'_ He suddenly broke off.

'The Shinsengumi is WHAT?!' Okita was now as alert as a cat. They heard him stop to take a breath with impatient breaths of their own. He continued momentarily.

_'KAMUI IS LEADING A UNIT OF YATO TO TAKE THEM DOWN!'_

_Kamui..._

Kagura didn't hear anything else after that, and neither did Sougo. Without a word, he started the engine and drove off at full speed.

'Wait! Sadist!' Kagura shouted as he sped off, but her words fell on deaf ears.

_'Kagura-chan?!' _Shinpachi asked.

'Dammit he took off!'

_'We have to help them! Gin-san is there, what if your brother finds him?!'_

She didn't even want to think about that. If that idiot of a brother hurt anyone...

'Shinpachi, hurry up and meet us there, ok? Sadaharu, let's go!' She said, turning to her pet.

'ARF!'

'_Got it! Be careful, don't face him by yourself.'_

'Gotcha.'

Sensing the urgency, Sadaharu took off at his greatest speed. Kagura felt a frantic anxiety overwhelming her as Sougo's car moved farther and farther out of sight.

_Damn you, sadist...don't do anything stupid!'_


	7. Suspicion

Drops of drizzle began to fall from the sky as the army of umbrella-wielding men moved forward. Their steady, purposeful march signalled the beginning of what would be a bloody dawn. They walked to a single tune, as if they were one, behind the man to whom they had sworn their undying loyalty. The young Harusame Admiral in question led his unit into battle with a blood lust he had not felt in a long time, and a slight smile crept onto his face as he realised just how worth the wait could be when the reward was finally given. He recalled his earlier impatience before Shinsuke had briefed him on their plans.

_'We will eliminate most of our enemies in one swoop.' The olive eyed samurai had told him, sitting leisurely against the window. 'And then...many things will come into place.'_

_Kamui remembered crossing his arms._

_'Such as? How about some more details?'_

_Takasugi had snickered at that before helping himself to a whiff from his pipe. Kamui began to tap his finger impatiently against his arm as the one eyed samurai slowly exhaled and turned to him with an amused smile._

_'You must be really bored if you're so interested in knowing the intricacies of our plan.' He remarked._

_Kamui found himself smiling at that and shrugged his shoulders carelessly._

_'You have yourself to blame for that, you know? I haven't fought in ages. All I've done for the past few weeks is wait, wait, WAIT.' At the last word his voice had became rough and his hands clenched unconsciously._

_Takasugi nodded his head slowly and raised a sheathed sword which had previously been on his person for Kamui to see._

_'I can understand that. A blade which is left idle for too long will eventually rust and become dull.'_

_He unsheathed the sword in his hands, revealing a sharp, silver blade with a gold hilt. Kamui gave a slight whistle in admiration._

_'Are you going to be using it?'_

_'Like I said before, we'll be cutting down most of our enemies in one swoop. I plan to use it at the right time.'_

_Kamui cocked his head to the side, silently asking for an elaboration. Takasugi obliged him with an instruction._

_'Kamui, I need you and your unit of Yato to take down the Shinsengumi.'_

_'Hmm? The what?'_

_'The law and order that protects the Bakufu.'_

_Kamui puffed in disappointment and waved his arms, irritated._

_'You want us to take down a bunch of policemen while you go and fight that silver haired samurai? No way! And besides that, my Harusame have a warrant out for him and one of the Joui patriots. It only makes sense that we take him out!'_

_Takasugi only smiled at his response and leaned back quietly._

_'If it makes you feel better, those 'policemen' have some of the best samurai you could ask for and they will not be easily taken down. I believe they would interest you greatly.'_

_'Herhh?' Kamui's face brightened up almost immediately. Takasugi nodded his head, though he now had a grave expression on his face._

_'As for that 'joui patriot' you spoke of... leave him to me. If you happen to see Gintoki before I do, I suppose I could forgive you for fighting him.'_

_Kamui laughed at that._

_'What makes you think he will show up?'_

_'That's just who he is. He has a knack for being at the wrong places at the wrong times. Even if he doesn't, I will not leave things to chance. Whether he wants it or not, he'll be coming to his final resting place.'_

_The Yato's smile had widened at that._

_'Shinsuke, you'd better hope YOU don't meet him first then. Because I wouldn't forgive you if you killed him.'_

_With those last words he stepped out, leaving Takasugi in the room._

With a smile, Kamui began to whistle a slow tune against the quiet of the night. His men soon joined in.

* * *

Gintoki couldn't believe he had been crammed in his cell for as long as he had without going insane. How many chapters has it been since he's been locked up?!

He was snapped out of his musings when he felt someone coming up to his cell and turned to see Hijikata. He sighed dramatically and began to pick at his nose.

'Another interrogation? You're even worse than Soichirou-kun!' He lamented, causing an angry vein to pop on Hijikata's head.

'What nonsense are you spewing?' The Shinsengumi Vice Commander wondered as he placed his arms in his pocket. Gintoki noticed his ever present cigarette was no longer, well, present. For some reason, he felt a different emotion coming from the black haired samurai, as if he had come for another purpose.

'Sougo contacted us not long ago. Apparently, an army of Yato are coming to wipe us out.'

Gintoki's eyes widened in shock and his heart stopped. An army of Yato was bad news for any one they planned to take on. Now he understood why Hijikata almost seemed resigned, as if he knew there was little they could do against them without suffering heavy casualties.

'So, why have you come here?' He asked the officer. Hijikata turned to him coldly.

'There are some things which aren't making sense and I don't like it when I don't know what's going on.' He had replied.

Gintoki felt his eyebrow rising, slightly in curiosity as he still didn't get why Hijikata was confiding in him, of all people. Then again, it wasn't like he had much doing so he allowed him to continue.

'The day you got arrested, we had received a tip off that Katsura would be having a meeting. But, this was not the first of such information we had received on him. Who would provide us with information like that? Does Katsura have a traitor in his ranks?' Hijikata mused.

Gintoki found that hard to believe. Katsura may be a brain dead idiot, but if he realised someone was onto him he would have done something about it. Of that at least he was very sure about his friend.

When he didn't respond, Hijikata continued with his thoughts.

'Also...the information is always given to us by Kondo-san who has insisted we keep you locked up until we get something. He has also been very serious of late which is as unlikely as his chances of ever being accepted by Miss Otae!'

'Are you saying that because you know he's not around to hear that!?'

Hijikata continued talking like nothing had been said.

'I think Sougo had the same misgivings. But what's the connection? What the _fuck_ is going on?!'

He was panting now, as he released the vent up frustration he had kept within him for so long. Gintoki looked at him silently, and didn't say anything until Hijikata finally sighed and returned to his calm façade.

'I suppose I wanted to let off some steam...even if it was to someone like you.' He said eventually before turning round, so that his back was now facing Gintoki.

'Listen, I don't know whether we'll live to see tomorrow, but we will protect this place and the Bakufu with our last breath.' With that he approached the door.

'At least let me out so I can help! You can't take them all on!' Gintoki found himself shouting to the Vice-Commander's back.

Hijikata turned to him with cold, blue eyes.

'A prisoner's place is behind bars.'

* * *

The only thing that had stopped Matako from shooting Katsura as soon as she had spotted him was the fact the Lord Shinsuke was next to him. _What the hell?!_

She was sure her senpai sitting next to her had the same expression on his face, which meant that this was something even he was not aware of.

'K-Katsura?!' He had blurted.

Lord Shinsuke had simply moved forward, leaving the area, and Katsura had followed him. All they could do was look on in dumbfounded shock as the two eventually faded from view, leaving them alone with Bansai.

'Bansai-dono, what's he doing here?!' She had all but screamed.

Bansai had only shrugged and walked off, leaving them even more bewildered at what they had just seen. Unable to take it, Matako turned her frustrations on Henpeita and grabbed him by the collar.

'Senpai, how can you not know what's going on? Aren't you supposed to be our tactician?!' She cried out as she violently shook him.

'I-I suppose this is how we are d-dealing with him! Instead of killing him, Takasugi-sama has gotten him to j-join our cause and- Oi let go of me already!' He cried out.

'There's no way this could have happened without some correspondences. You were too busy being a lolicon to pay attention to what was going on!' She barked.

'I'm not a lolicon I'm a feminist! And this was NOT in our plans!'

As they kept bickering, Katsura followed Takasugi's lead. He remembered the one thing that Takasugi had told him that had caused him to reconsider his stance.

_I avenged Shouyo-sensei_


	8. Storms

Katsura was sitting in his usual, refined manner as his eyes roamed around the room Takasugi had brought them to. Not far from him, Takasugi had adopted a more casual position and was staring at his former comrade with traces of amusement on his face.

'Ne, Zura, remember what happened the last time we met?' He finally asked, causing Katsura to turn sharply in his direction.

'You mean when you bargained the lives of Gintoki and me to the Harusame for your own personal agenda? It's very unlikely I'll ever forget.' He answered seriously.

Takasugi couldn't help the snicker that came out of his lips. 'So then, has your hatred towards me increased?' He asked when he was able to compose himself at last.

'Drastically.'

'I can't help but wonder then, why you would wish to partner with me.' He remarked, casting a suspicious eye on the long haired samurai.

Rather than be fazed, Katsura turned to him with a heated expression, taking the Kiheitai leader slightly aback.

'This isn't about trust or even friendship. I will never trust you again after what you did to us and as I said before, I no longer consider you my comrade.' Takasugi didn't react so Katsura continued.

'Since the last time we met you've allied with the Harusame, the Mimiwarigumi and, if the reports I hear are correct, the Hitotsubashi faction of the Tokugawa family. While I don't approve of your methods, I can't overlook those achievements especially when our resistance grows weaker thanks to the efforts of those Bakufu _dogs._' He snarled.

Takasugi leaned back slowly against the wall in response, blending into the dark of the room, and there was a moment of silence before he spoke.

'And are you hoping you can keep me back? Honestly, you should know by now that I'm no better than a rabid dog.' He mused.

'Even if I have to get bitten, I will not allow you to hurt the people of this town.'

Takasugi scoffed in irritation.

'And that is why you will never win_. _You worry about too many things, carry too many burdens and yet you don't want to let go. When you have nothing holding you back, you are _free.'_

Katsura's eyes changed in quality, almost akin to pity but not quite.

'Takasugi...there is a difference between being free...and being empty.'

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, causing them to turn to it instantly, their former conversation now forgotten.

'Sorry to interrupt Shinsuke-sama, but we caught someone spying around. We think he might interest you.' Came Matako's voice from behind the door.

'A spy?' Katsura wondered.

Takasugi got up wordlessly and approached the door, sliding it open. He turned to Katsura with a smirk.

'Come along, Zura. Perhaps you might know this person.' He said before taking the lead.

He heard Katsura getting up and following behind him and couldn't help the smile that came to his face. As they approached the darker reaches of the ship, Katsura began to feel a sense of dread, as if he were entering a prison. His hand unconsciously reached for where his sword was, only to grasp nothing. He inwardly swore, remembering he had had to remove all weapons on his person before being allowed to come on board.

They finally stopped at an open metallic door and entered. Several men, including Bansai and Henpeita were standing before someone who had been chained. Katsura strained in the dark to get a clear view of this person as they approached. When he finally recognised the prisoner, he stopped in his tracks.

White was stained with red which was visible even though the room had very little light. The bearer of the blood was silent, perhaps because he could not talk.

'Elizabeth...' He whispered in disbelief.

At that moment one of the men proceeded to punch the amanto squarely in the face, to his outrage. He clenched his fists.

'What do you think you're doing, you bastard?!' He roared, approaching the man with the full intention of beating him to a pulp. Takasugi held him back with a touch to the shoulder.

'Your friend here killed several of our men before he was taken down.' Bansai explained, turning to the prisoner. 'We heard that there was someone else with him, but the initial guards who recognised that person were all killed.'

At that information, his eyes widened.

'Someone...else?'

'Whoever it was, he could ruin our plans if he found out anything.' Matako added, shooting a dark look at Katsura. 'How do we know you weren't behind all this? This is your friend after all.'

Katsura did not even glance in her direction when he responded.

'I did not tell anyone of my intentions, not even my own men.'

'And why should we believe that?! You've ruined our plans before!'

'Matako.' Bansai reprimanded, silencing her. She crossed her arms and pouted in response. Bansai turned his attention to Takasugi, who had been silent throughout the whole exchange.

'What are we to do with him?' He asked him.

'If he won't talk just kill him.' The Kiheita leader replied disinterestedly. Katsura turned sharply to him at this but he continued. 'We have no time to waste on such trivialities. Our plans are too advanced to be stopped no matter what anyone tries to do.'

Bansai nodded.

'Very well.' He unsheathed his sword. Katsura came in between them and Elizabeth.

'No, don't!'

'And why not? He killed some of our men.' Henpeita remarked, crossing his arms. Matako brought out her guns.

'Get out of the way, Katsura or so help me I'll shoot you dead! Without your sword you can't hope to protect yourself from my bullets.'

Katsura stood his ground and turned his attention to Takasugi who was smirking.

'Takasugi, don't kill him, I beg you.'

'I told you, you need to let go of your burdens if you truly wish to win.' He replied, as Matako came forward to his side. 'Consider it a favour from me.' He added as the Crimson Bullet aimed her gun at Elizabeth's head which was over Katsura's shoulder and took the shot.

In that split second, knowing he had no other option, Katsura placed his arm in the way of the bullet. Splatters of blood fell on the shocked Elizabeth's face as he watched Katsura hold his arm in agony but still remain in position.

The stunned members of the Kiheitai turned silently to their leader. Takasugi was looking into Katsura's eyes, as if seeking something, and when he found it he turned round to leave.

'Shinsuke-sama?' Matako was confused.

'Leave him be for now. It's not like he's going anywhere.' He ordered, leaving the room. Bansai nodded in acceptance before glancing at Katsura briefly. A small smile appeared on his face before he also left after Takasugi.

When he was gone everyone else returned their attention to the war veteran, who was looking at them with such rage that Henpeita and some of the men took a step back. They realised that the calm, polite swordsman who had been before them only moments ago was now gone. In his place was the Young Noble of Fury as he had been in the days of the war and he cut an intimidating figure even as blood flowed freely from his left hand.

'Anyone who touches Elizabeth again, is a _dead man._' He growled.

* * *

The news that an army of Yato were coming had caused panic among the ranks of the Shinsengumi. The Yato were well known for their battle prowess; one was known to have the strength of over twenty normal men. Their only hopes lay in the fact that they had some men who were most certainly not normal in their ranks, though the most powerful of them was still absent.

The Commander, Vice-Commander and the captains of all the units (except the 1st) now stood before their men. Hijikata came forward to speak.

'Listen up everyone. Now that the neighbourhood has been evacuated, this is all out survival. We are the last stand between them and the Bakufu. We will make use of our bazookas and fire at them while they are miles away from us. Our advantage comes in our numbers so DON'T attempt to take them on one on one or even one BY one when they get close. Gang up on them, because they will not show you any honour or mercy. Each captain, including the Commander and myself will assign ourselves to different groups and concentrate on taking down the Yato individually. I'm sorry if the plan sounds bad, but we only received news of their coming from Sougo a little while ago.'

'Vice-Commander, where is Captain Okita? We need him!' One of the soldiers shouted, and everyone else joined in.

'He is on his way, rest assured. But even if he doesn't come on time we need to be ready to defend ourselves without him. Everyone should be prepared to die tonight.'

At this, they were all downcast. Yamazaki brightened up when he remembered something.

'Vice-Commander! What about the _Danna_? He could help us!'

Both Kondo and Hijikata flinched at this before Hijikata responded.

'Where is your pride as samurai? You're thinking of asking someone you are keeping prisoner for help?'

'But-'

'Quiet!'

At this some of the men began to bicker.

'Hey if he can help us why the hell can't we ask him?'

'He's even stronger than you, Vice Commander!'

'You want us all to die?!'

An angry vein popped on Hijikata's face as he struggled to contain himself. To his relief, Kondo came forward and after a few moments the shouts fell to low murmuring.

'Guys, I understand the desperation that's going through you. None of us wants to die tonight, but we need to remember who we are; we are the Shinsengumi. Take pride in that name! It's all some of us have, let's not drag it in the mud by shaming ourselves. Besides, one man won't make much of a difference.'

Everyone was silent.

'All right everyone, let's get ready!'

Slowly, they got up and made ready to fight, silently hoping the Yato would never come. Kondo was about to leave as well but then he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. he didn't need to turn to know who was keeping him back.

'What is it Toshi?'

'Kondo-san, you know I respect you more than anything and that's why I've kept many questions to myself. However, now that there is a possibility that I will not see tomorrow, I believe you should also grant me some respect as well, and tell me what is going on.'

He released Kondo's shoulder and watched his Commander turn fully to him. Kondo sighed.

'Toshi, I'm sorry I made you feel that way, it's just that I didn't want to involve you in case...'

Hijikata frowned.

'In case what? Are you doing something dangerous? I promise not to tell anyone but please, at least confide in me.'

Kondo smiled and patted his shoulder.

'I will, you have my word on that. But not now when we should be getting ready. Keep yourself alive Toshi, and I will tell you everything when we are victorious.'

Hijikata's eyes lowered and he nodded his head, though he wondered if they had any chance of winning at all.

In the cells, Gintoki was woken by the sounds of someone entering. He looked up to see Yamazaki entering with what appeared to be strawberry milk in his hand.

'_Danna_, I thought you might want something sweet.' He said handing it over.

Gintoki took it from him without a second thought and gulped down its contents like it was water. When he was done he let out a great sigh of relief and lay back in a relaxed position.

'So...what's the catch?' He asked silently.

'Eh?'

'A bunch of Yato are on their way to attack and you come to me with strawberry milk. Convenient timing isn't it?'

'H-How do you know about...'

'Oi, oi, I don't have all day. Out with it.'

Realising he had been caught, the young officer sighed.

'_Danna_, I don't know why you've been locked up, but I do know you are a good man who probably should not be here. I beg you, please help us defeat the Yato!'

He bowed his head at the Yorozuya boss who only scratched his hair apathetically.

'So...you want me to help you fight the Yato in exchange for strawberry milk? You'd have to do better than that.'

Yamazaki brought out another carton.

'How about another one?'

'Oi are you serious? At least make it ten or something?!'

'Ten!? O-okay, I can get some more. So then, if I give it to you will you help us?'

'Hmm...there is something else I would require.' He looked at the spy intently. 'You spy for the Shinsengumi, do you not? I know you would have noticed something amiss. Tell me what you know about what's going on with your Commander.'

'Eh? B-but...'

'If you don't, Yamazaki, then the deal's off. And I ain't giving back the strawberry milk!' As he said this he reached out from the bars and snatched the carton from Yamazaki's hand, taking him off guard.

'Oi!' He protested, watching in amazement as Gintoki drank the whole carton as quickly as he had before. He sighed, knowing he didn't have much of a choice.

'I'm afraid I don't know that much. All I know is, I've noticed the Commander has been receiving information from the 3rd Unit Captain, Saitou Shimaru. I found that strange because Saitou-san is mainly responsible for internal affairs, he's pretty much doing my job now! And as to where he gets all the information on Katsura from, I can only imagine. Okita-san got suspicious, and I'm sure that's why he's not around right now. Also, I was able to intercept one of the letters Kondo-san received. It was about you. It said he should make sure you stay behind bars!'

Gintoki's eyes lowered as he processed the information he'd received. He leaned against the wall silently.

'And that's all I know, I swear! Please, _Danna_, I beg you to help us.' As he said this he went down on all fours and bowed his head.

'And how do you plan to free me from here?' Gintoki asked, quietly gazing at the prostrated figure.

'Leave that to me.'

'Won't your Vice Commander get mad at you and force you to commit seppuku or something like that?'

Yamazaki raised his head and looked at Gintoki with a face full of resolve.

'If he commands me to, I would gladly do it. All I know is that there are times when one man _does_ make a difference, especially if he's someone like you. I don't want my comrades to die if they don't have to...'

Gintoki smiled and nodded his head.

'Then...we have a deal, samurai-san.'

* * *

When the battle finally started several officers could be heard gulping in fear. The Leaders of the Shinsengumi stood in front as their enemies came into sight. To everyone's relief, there were only ten Yato approaching them instead of the army they had been told of, but Hijikata found his eyes narrowing at the sight of Kamui.

'That young one in front is their leader. He looks dangerous.' He remarked aloud. Kondo nodded in agreement.

'They look closely knit too. I'm wondering if we'll be able to isolate them.' He added.

Finally the Yato stopped their advance, leaving a decent amount of distance between them.

'Oiii! You're the Shinsengumi, right?!' Kamui yelled from where he was, to their confusion. They all turned to look at each other incredulously.

'What's it to you?!' Hijikata yelled back.

'Oh well, just wondering how you knew we were coming! Never mind, it makes things more fun this way!' Came the response.

Many of the officers immediately bristled.

'You find killing people fun, you twisted freak?!' One of them shouted.

'Nah, you guys are small fry! Killing you guys will be the boring bit! But your leaders should at least be more entertaining!' Kamui responded with his ever present smile.

'This is just a game to him.' Hijikata muttered in disgust. He gripped his sword tighter in anger.

'Tell you what! The strongest person among you should come out and face me. If he beats me, then I and my unit will leave. Deal?' the young Harusame Admiral continued.

'What?!' The Shinsengumi turned to each other in shock.

'Is he serious?!'

'So we may not need to fight at all?'

'But Captain Okita is not around!'

They heard the sound of screeching tyres and everyone, both human and Yato turned in time to see a car moving in at top speed. As the Shinsengumi made way for it to pass, they smirked in happiness as they made out Okita in the driver's seat.

'The Captain is here!'

'Captain Okita is here!'

'Honestly, what was he thinking taking so damn long?' Hijikata muttered as Kondo smiled beside him.

To the surprise of Kamui and his unit, the car drove straight towards them, forcing them to move out of the way. The car crashed into a nearby wall and exploded into flames.

'Hmm? What was that about?' Kamui wondered aloud.

'Oi.'

He turned round in time to parry a strike with his umbrella, getting a good view of Okita's angry face.

'Heh. Well, this should be interesting.' He remarked, pushing Okita back.

'There's our strongest fighter! Let's see if you can beat him!' Hijikata yelled to Kamui's delight.

Sougo gave him smirk as he prepared his stance.

'Captain of the 1st Unit of the Shinengumi, Okita Sougo, ready to kill you.' He said, causing Kamui to smirk back and resume an offensive position.

'Admiral Kamui of the Harusame pirates, would like to see you try!'

* * *

**A/N: If you don't want a spoiler for the most recent chapters of the manga don't read this note.**

**I know Okita and Kamui have already met in the manga but I thought of this long before I read it and just can't change it now. Pls enjoy**


	9. Blood

Their fight was like a vicious dance as they each tried to overpower the other. The Shinsengumi watched with baited breath as their 1st Unit Captain stood between them and what was likely to be an agonizing death if he lost. The Yato leader was incredibly strong, and some worried that even the great Sougo would not be able to overpower him. They fought with an agility and grace that was mesmerising to behold and both sides, human and Yato, watched with rapt attention.

Yamazaki, who stood at the back knew he wouldn't get another opportunity to leave and find where the key to the cells had been placed. His eyes narrowed slightly as he briefly wondered if they would still need the _Danna's_ help. After all, he had never seen anyone defeat Captain Okita before.

_But this is a Yato we're talking about...I'd better not take any chances._

With his mind made up, he made use of his incognito abilities and slipped away from the battle lines unnoticed.

Sougo found himself being pushed back by a brutal swipe from Kamui's umbrella. He managed to regain his footing before he could fall but instantly had to parry with his sword as the Yato was on him again with the speed of a predator hunting its prey. Kamui's eyes were practically dancing with delight as he applied more force, watching the samurai in front of him struggle to prevent his own sword from cutting into his shoulder.

'You samurai are truly interesting...' Kamui remarked offhandedly, and Sougo noted with annoyance that he didn't seem to be putting much effort into the deadlock.

'Is that so? You're very different from your sister.' He bit back, surprising the red head, who moved back. Sougo could feel his bones ache as he readied himself. Kamui cocked his head to the side slightly.

'Hmm? You know my sister? I'm jealous! I don't know how but she seems to attract strong people to her; first that silver haired samurai and now you? Probably to make up for her own weakness.' A cruel sneer spread across his lips. 'A pity she isn't here so I can wipe her out with the whole lot of you.' He remarked coldly.

Sougo could feel his hand unconsciously gripping his sword tighter, though he didn't know why. One thing he knew for certain was that he wanted nothing more than to take the bastard down.

Kamui pointed his umbrella at him and took several shots. He was impressed when Okita deflected them easily with his sword, and with a lustful expression he charged towards him with his weapon raised.

Hijikata could feel his cigarette falling out of his mouth as he watched Kamui savagely hit at Okita's katana. _What a monster...can Sougo really beat this guy?!_

He quickly turned to one of the men behind him.

'Get me a bazooka, quickly.' He instructed, to the man's surprise.

'Eh? But Vice Commander, if you interrupt the fight they might attack us!'

'Just do as I say!' He barked back.

The Officer seemed reluctant to comply, but he inclined his head and ran off to do as ordered. Kondo turned quizzically to his deputy, wondering at the order.

'Toshi?'

'I'm not letting that freak kill him. If I see that Sougo can't take any more I'm ending the fight.'

His Commander nodded in approval but their attention was drawn sharply back to the fight when they heard gasps coming from the men around them. They found themselves gasping as well.

Sougo and Kamui had struck each other in the chest, but whilst Kamui seemed to be handling his injury like it wasn't even there, Sougo took a few painful steps back as he clutched the affected region.

'SOUGO!'

* * *

While the Harusame was busy dealing with the Shinsengumi, the Kiheitai was taking advantage of the distraction and heading off to another section of Edo via their now flying ship. Takasugi stood out on deck, watching the city below with an incomprehensible disgust in his eye. He felt footsteps approaching from behind him though he did not bother to turn. He already knew who it was. After the footsteps had stopped Bansai began to speak.

'It seems the Young Admiral is giving us plenty of time.' He remarked, with the wind blowing at his hair.

Takasugi craned his head slightly in response, looking at him from the corner of his eye and smiled.

'Yes, but that is not what you wanted to talk about. Something has been on your mind for some time now...or rather, should I say someone?' He observed, turning back to his initial view.

Bansai shrugged and came closer until he had reached Takasugi's side. He gazed down quietly at the city below and took some time to respond.

'I'm curious as to why you wanted him to join us at such a crucial time.' He finally said. 'He has foiled our plans before, or were you perhaps hoping to keep an eye on him? Why not just kill him then like you plan on doing to Shiroyasha?' He wondered, knowing that Shinsuke knew of whom he spoke.

Takasugi didn't respond so he continued, determined to get his point across.

'I admit that he is a capable leader and an extraordinary fighter, making him a great asset if he is willing to follow our cause. But we all know he doesn't fully support your methods. And I believe he has made this known to you. If you allow him to come he will only restrain you.'

Takasugi actually snickered at this and put one hand in his yukata.

'He is welcome to try. But as to why I want him here, you already know.'

Bansai put an arm on his waist nonchalantly.

'Yes, to make sure the other Jouishishi do not interfere. That may be true but...shall I present a theory of my own on your true interest in him?'

Takasugi turned to him briefly and shrugged his shoulders carelessly, which Bansai took as permission to continue.

'You and the Shiroyasha are polar opposites of each other; he is the light to your dark. He would rather die than see a comrade of his in danger, whereas you are willing to sacrifice yours if it takes you closer to your goal. He focuses on the present, you focus on the past. He is able to live in this world whereas you can't stand it and wish to see it burn. Katsura is the bridge; he opposes the Bakufu like you but like Shiroyasha he is not willing to see the world go to ashes. It's like some tug of war between you and Sakata Gintoki, and he is the rope that is being pulled at. By having Katsura on your side, you're trying to make a point to the White devil, like you've won some great prize.'

Takasugi couldn't help the chuckle that came out of his lips at Bansai's analysis. He raised his head to look up into the sky.

'Interesting hypothesis.' He remarked. 'If only our relationship was that simple.' He added, before returning his attention to the assassin.

'It's almost time, get everyone ready.' And with that he left the deck without saying anything else. Bansai watched him go with crossed arms, though he remained silent.

Takasugi made his way down the passageways of the ship until he reached a certain door and entered unceremoniously.

Katsura looked up from what he was doing in surprise. When he saw who the intruder was, however, he sighed.

'I see you still don't remember how to knock.' He remarked, returning to what he was doing. On closer examination, Takasugi could see that he was attempting to remove the bullet that had lodged in his arm thanks to Matako's revolvers.

'And I see you aren't willing to trust our doctors.' He remarked.

Katsura only snorted in response, leaving it unsaid that he did not trust anybody on the ship. Takasugi came closer and knelt next to him.

'Allow me...' He offered, though he had already taken the pincers from his fellow patriot's hand. Katsura seemed reluctant to entrust his wound to him but he ultimately shrugged and raised his arm, resigning himself to the pain that was sure to come.

The one-eyed samurai inserted the pincers into the flesh wound slowly so as to not aggravate the wound as he went deeper into his former comrade's arm.

'Doesn't this remind you of the past? We used to do this often after battle.' He remarked, noticing Katsura grimace.

'Yes...but you were definitely more careful then-UGH!' He stifled a cry as Takasugi pressed the pincers from inside his flesh and smirked.

'Found it...try to hold still so I can bring it out.' He said, as he proceeded to bring the pincers out with the object they had captured. Katsura cringed and the pain became so bad he was afraid he would bite his own tongue off.

'Done.'

He placed the bloody bullet on the table for Katsura to see. The Joui patriot looked at it indifferently but he nodded gratefully as he proceeded to dab at the wound with some spirit.

'What was your initial reason for coming?' He finally asked, watching his childhood friend lean back at the question.

'We are getting ready to launch our assault. Get yourself ready.' Came the response as Takasugi got up from the floor and made to leave. Katsura watched him walk off with an unreadable expression on his face.

'Will you allow me to use my sword then? I'll be useless to you without a weapon.'

Takasugi came to a halt just in front of the door and turned back to look at him. His cold, piercing eye pinned his former comrade's.

'Very well. However...' A gleam came to his eye. 'If you attempt anything foolish, know that it is your friend who will suffer the consequences.' He warned, closing the door behind him.

When he was gone Katsura looked down at his arm and then at the floor, his mind full of doubts. He wasn't sure if he would survive the night.

* * *

It was amazing that with the amount of blood pouring across the field none of the two warriors had succumbed to their injuries. Sougo was still clutching his chest with one of his hands, while deflecting Kamui's blows with the other, placing him at a disadvantage. Kamui had long abandoned his umbrella and was using hand to hand against the injured samurai. He stepped back after a while and examined the Officer's exhausted state.

'Well, it looks like you can't go on much longer. As a reward for your impressive skill, allow me to make your death as quick and painless as possible!' He said, as he wiped at some blood around his mouth and charged forward with incredible speed considering the state of his injuries.

Sougo slashed at him, forcing him to somersault into the air and aim a lethal kick at his head. The Shinsengumi captain was able to dodge by jumping backwards, to the relief of his comrades. He and Kamui then engaged in a blow for blow fight, with Kamui ignoring the wounds he received in order to deal a decisive blow. With his yato strength, he aimed a massive punch at Sougo's torso, causing him to throw up blood.

Sougo gave a cry and fell to his knees, struggling to breathe. Kamui then went back and picked up his umbrella. He began walking towards him slowly, too calmly for the samurai's liking. When he got closer he stopped and gave a smile.

'It's over.' He said with cold blue eyes. He aimed his umbrella at Okita's head and prepared to fire...

But then his sharp ears caught a strange sound and he turned in shock to see a bazooka being aimed in his direction. Hijikata glared at him coldly as he held the bazooka on his shoulder.

'DIE.'

He pulled the trigger.


	10. Angst

**A/N: Hi everyone, sorry for the wait! Anyway, I've got some new followers! Welcome aboard and I hope you enjoy the story! Everyone, please don't hesitate to let me know what you think, maybe I should make the chapters longer?**

* * *

The blast that resulted lit up the overwhelming darkness of the night. Whilst some officers scrambled to get Sougo away for medical assistance, the rest watched the flames billow, knowing now that they would have to fight for their lives. But they no longer felt despair; after seeing one of their captains put his life on the line for them, they were more than willing sacrifice their own. It was almost as if the fires in their own souls had been ignited.

Hijikata threw the bazooka in his hands to the ground and turned his cold eyes to the Yato group as they stood from afar, watching the fire and smoke engulf the area. Kondo stood forward to address them.

'Your leader is dead. You'd all do well to leave now while you still have the chance!' He yelled.

As he said this, some officers behind him raised bazookas onto their shoulders and aimed, ready to fire at his command. Abuto laughed, and they wondered at his detachment.

'You guys are truly interesting, Shinsengumi! But...what makes you think something like that can kill our captain?' He asked.

Kondo's eyes widened.

'There's no way he could have-'

'Ah, teteteteh...'

They all returned their attention sharply to the dissipating smoke and gazed in horror as they made out an outspread umbrella. The person behind it stood up slowly and gave a smile.

'Awww, you ruined my fun...that's cheating, you know?'

Hijikata could feel his eyes narrowing.

_So...he was able to get his umbrella in the way...although..._

He surveyed the Yato Admiral's bruised body. In addition to the wounds Sougo had inflicted, there was now an iron rod sticking in his chest, most likely as a result of being pushed back by the force of the explosion. Kamui could no longer stand upright, and now that the adrenaline of battle had passed, it was obvious that the pain he had previously ignored had caught up to him. At the very least, Hijikata was hopeful that Sougo had succeeded in decommissioning the Yato leader from battle.

Beside him, he could hear Kondo inquiring on Sougo's condition and hoped he would be all right. (Of course, he would never be caught saying that out loud.)

With a sigh, he unsheathed his sword and gazed out at the Yato in front of him. Abuto had now moved to his Captain's side and was standing between him and the Shinsegumi.

'I suppose we might as well get back to business.' The Yato Deputy remarked offhandedly to his Boss, placing his large umbrella on his shoulder. Kamui smiled innocently.

'The fight was pretty much over anyway. Let's hurry up and get back.' He ordered. Abuto nodded and beckoned their men to move forward.

At this, the Yato charged towards the Shinsengumi. Hijikata turned to his men.

'FIRE!'

The sounds of missiles being released immediately followed his order.

* * *

_'Oi Zura...I want to talk to you.' The young boy had said as he approached his classmate, who was reclining under a tree. Katsura had looked up from the book he had been reading and sighed when he saw that it was Takasugi who had spoken._

_'It's not Zura, it's Katsura. What do you want?' He asked, through slightly narrowed eyes, looking up when the other boy finally came to a stop in front of him. It was obvious that he was expecting a confrontation._

_Takasugi crossed his arms and smirked._

_'I want to know...how did you do it?' He asked, to his classmate's confusion._

_'Do what?'_

_'How did you do so well in that test when the rest of us were average at best? You cheated, didn't you?' He elaborated._

_Katsura's eyes lowered even further and, without a word, he returned his attention to his book. Angry that he was being ignored, Takasugi slapped the book out of his hands. _

_'Hey!' He protested, watching as the book flew into the air and fell a distance away. He got to his feet angrily._

_'Answer my question!' Takasugi snapped._

_'Maybe if you had actually prepared yourself for the test you could have done better!' He snapped back. _

_'What was that?' The short haired boy demanded, taking a hold of Katsura's haori and daring him to continue. Not intimidated by this, Katsura continued to speak his mind._

_'Every single question we were asked in that test has an answer in that book you tuck away after lessons are over. And yet you don't read and when you end up getting bad marks you want to blame someone else for your own mistakes!'_

_He received an angry punch that made him take a few steps back. He glared at the boy in front of him as he held his cheek. Takasugi smirked._

__'What's the matter? Are you too much of a gentleman to fight back?' He sneered. Katsura shook his head at him.__

_'That's all you ever do. I don't know what your frustrations are, but I'd appreciate it if you didn't take them out on me.'_

_Takasugi's eyes narrowed and he clenched his fists._

_'You always act like you're some perfect student, like you're better than the rest of us.' The long haired boy's eyes widened in surprise at this but before he could respond they heard Gintoki's voice calling._

_'Oiiii Takasugi, Zura!'_

_Both turned sharply to the side and saw him running up to them. Takasugi watched him approach wordlessly so it was Katsura who was the first to speak when he finally came up._

_'It's not Zura, it's Katsura!' He reiterated indignantly._

_Gintoki only shrugged his shoulders indifferently before pointing in the direction of their school._

_'I hear Shouyou-sensei's calling everyone to class for some sweets! Don't you worry, I'll take yours for you!' He had said, and he ran off to do just that._

_Katsura's and Takasugi's jaws fell open at the same time and they turned to stare at each other. They both knew what would happen to their sweets once Gintoki got his hands on them..._

_'Oh no you don't!' Takasugi shouted, running after him. _

_'Don't touch my sweets, Gintoki!' Katsura added, following closely behind. Luckily for them, by the time they got there Shouyo-sensei had reserved their sweets for them and they were able to eat to their hearts' content. Their earlier fight was now all but forgotten._

Katsura smiled at the memory as he stood out on deck not far from Takasugi and his minions. He looked from the sword in his right hand to his former comrade silently.

_Now I have to fight one-handed...this could be a problem_

'The city is beautiful at night, isn't it?' A female voice at his side asked.

He was surprised to see that it was Matako who was talking to him.

'Yes...yes, it is.' He said cautiously, knowing she had come to stand next to him for a reason. His suspicions were confirmed when the blonde turned to him with a glint in her eye.

'I'll be as direct as possible; I don't trust you in the least and if I have any reason to believe you will betray Lord Shinsuke's trust, I will make sure my bullet hits you in a more vital spot than the last time.' She threatened. Katsura looked at her with unintimidated eyes even as she removed the safety on one of her guns.

'I will not hesitate.' She added, discretely aiming at his chest so that the others around would not notice.

Katsura sighed, and it irritated her how casually he was taking everything.

'You hear me?!'

Katsura placed his finger on the gun's barrel and turned it down so that it was pointing at the floor.

'You will not be shooting me here, so you might as well put the gun down. And secondly...your lord and I have made it very clear we do not trust it each other. It is therefore very unlikely I can betray his trust.' He finally responded.

'All the same, I'll be keeping my eyes on you.'

'Do what you want.' He replied, moving away from her. She watched him go, wishing she could shoot him then and there with his back turned so he wouldn't dodge.

She noticed Henpeita on another side of the deck and went up to him. When she came beside him he turned to her slightly, acknowledging her presence, before returning to his view.

'Tell me something, senpai. Before Lord Shinsuke was able to convince Katsura to join us how were we intending to deal with him and the Joui if they had wanted to intervene?'

Henpeita shrugged.

'You could say that we were...helping the Shinsengumi out.' He answered, to her shock.

'Helping...the Shinsengumi?!'

Henpeita laughed. It had obviously been his plan with the way he looked so pleased.

'We supplied them with information that gave them an advantage over our fellow...'comrades'.' He answered.

'What kind of information?'

'Whenever there were meetings, plans to commit terrorism...we informed the Bakufu dogs and they were able to intercept and make some arrests. Joui have no problem sharing information on their intentions with fellow Joui after all. Our only issue was that it was hard getting information on Katsura's unit.' As he said this his eyes turned to the person in question. 'And he was the main person who would have been against our plans. He could have also rallied other Joui factions against us.'

'So what did you do about it?'

'What _could_ we do? Let's just say this is a better alternative.'

Matako's hand found her chin as she thought over what she had just been told.

'So then...by providing information to the Shinsengumi, we were making the Joui weaker so that they wouldn't be able to respond properly once we initiated our plan? That's genius.' She commended.

'Isn't it?' Henpeita added, looking pleased at her compliment. They both turned when they heard cannon fire coming from a large building in the distance.

'It looks like we've arrived.' She remarked. Henpeita nodded and turned his head to the men at the cannons.

'Return fire and let's begin evasive manoeuvres! We don't want to get hit by those cannons.' He directed.

'Yes sir!'

Katsura looked at the Palace in the distance and sighed.

'It has begun.' He murmured. Takasugi turned to him, having heard him, and smirked. 'Let's see who gets the Shogun's head first.' He said.

* * *

The Yato had managed to evade the missiles that had been launched at them, forcing Hijikata to order the Shinsengumi to engage them in combat. They fought like monsters, and Hijikata wondered if they would be able to win.

Some of the Shinsengumi officers attempted to attack Kamui, but even with his injuries he was able to defend himself. He impaled one officer in the chest with his hand while using his umbrella in his other hand to shoot at some others that attempted to intervene.

'Humans are so weak.' He muttered.

Abuto was dealing with Kondo, who had to move back to avoid a vicious swipe.

'Show me your skills, Commander of the Shinsengumi!' He shouted as he continued to attack.

Bringing his sword in the way of another hit caused it to bend. He looked at it in dismay. 'My Kotetsu-!'

'Kondo-san!'

Hijikata came up to reinforce his Commander and pointed his sword at the Yato deputy. Abuto smirked.

'The more the merrier!' He mocked, as he charged towards them.

'Tosshi!'

'These guys are too strong for us!' He dodged a kick from the Yato and returned it with a slash that cut into Abuto's hand. Abuto responded by licking at some of the blood on his hand.

'Is that all?' He wondered, as he came forward again with his umbrella.

He attempted to hit Hijikata with a decisive blow, forcing the Vice Commander to parry. As they were in the deadlock, Abuto noticed Kondo about to stab him from behind and moved out of it suddenly, grabbing Hijikata by surprise and throwing him into his Commander. He used his umbrella to shoot mercilessly into some officers that attempted to come to their aid before pointing his umbrella at them.

'The deaths of the Commander and Vice Commander is the death of the Shinsengumi!' He shouted.

'NOOO!'

Abuto barely turned in time before he was pounced on by white fur. Growling in irritation, he threw Sadaharu away from him and stood up. He smirked at the girl who appeared in front of him, with her umbrella on her shoulder.

'Well, well, look who's here.' He remarked. She glared at him, remembering their previous encounter. Sadaharu came up behind her.

'Where's my stupid big brother?' She asked him.

Abuto shrugged.

'He is here somewhere as well, wiping these weaklings into the mud. What? Don't tell me you want to fight him over me? I can't allow that.'

Kagura didn't reply. Instead, she turned to Hijikata and Kondo as they raised themselves up, holding their heads.

'Where's that stupid sadist?' She asked them.

'He was badly injured facing their leader.' Kondo replied. Kagura grit her teeth angrily. 'But he was also able to injure him at least!' Kondo added, hoping it would make her feel better. If anything, it looked like she felt worse.

'Oi, China girl. Was that young man your brother?' Hijikata asked unceremoniously. Kondo turned to him in shock before turning to her.

'Wha-! Now that you mention it there is an alikeness!' He remarked, seeing Kamui in her face.

Abuto laughed, causing them to return their attention to him.

'Yes, they're related by blood. But they're hardly alike in character are they?!' He remarked.

Kagura's eyes were narrowed. She wanted to ask about Gin-chan, but she didn't want her brother or Abuto to know that he was around. Gorilla had said Kamui had been injured, and she felt her hand tightening around her umbrella, conflicted.

'Don't blank out on me now, little girl!' Kagura immediately moved out of the way of Abuto's kick and gave a rebound kick of her own, hitting him in the mouth. Abuto grabbed her leg and threw her into one of the walls. Hijikata and Kondo were shocked to see Kagura getting up like nothing had happened. She charged forward with her umbrella raised. She needed to get to Kamui!

'Out of my way!'

'You aren't getting to the Captain with me around!'

'That's fine! Maybe you will face me instead?' Causing Abuto and Kagura to pause and turn to see who had spoken.

Gintoki came forward with his sword in hand. Hijikata's eyes narrowed as he wondered how he could have gotten out.

'Yamazaki...'

'Oi Mayora!' Hijikata shot an exasperated look at the silver haired samurai.

'What?!'

'This is not the time for pride...this is the time for blood.'


	11. Reason

**A/N: Hi everyone! I want to say a big thanks to Matsuki Sakata for your reviews! I'm so glad my fic is one of your faves! :D**

**Anyway, please enjoy! Is anyone else loving the epicness of the recent manga chapters?!**

* * *

Kagura watched with shocked eyes as Gintoki made his way forward. As to how he had been able to free himself she didn't care...all she knew was that as long as he was here everything would be all right.

She turned to Abuto and shot him a smirk as he looked between her and her boss with a slight look of irritation on his face. The one armed Vice Captain found himself in quite the predicament.

_Keh! I'd rather not fight the Captain's long sought-after prize, I love my life too much!_

Gintoki came to a halt not far from them and raised his sword. Although it was wooden, it glinted against the moonlight. He smiled at the Yato Deputy Captain and beckoned to Kagura with his head.

'You see that little monster over there? She has other matters to attend to. It looks like you'll have to make do with me.' He said softly, masking the anger that had gripped his heart at the sight he had come to meet; bodies littered all over the place with the stench of blood tainting the air as the Shinsengumi struggled to tackle the ten Yato that had attacked them and Kagura's bruised face and body as she had faced a man nearly twice her size.

Kagura watched with dread as two more Yato came from behind, bolstering Abuto's rank. Gintoki didn't even look fazed.

'Gin-chan...'

'Get going. This may be your only chance to reach out to him.'

And she knew he was right. Kamui was injured, he wouldn't be able put up much of a fight against her. But how could she just leave her father-figure to face these monsters?

'Don't worry, we'll take care of him for you.' Kagura turned to the source of that voice and was surprised to see Hijikata and Kondo raising themselves up with their swords. It was Kondo who had spoken, and he gave her a warm smile.

'Get to your brother and end this as quickly as possible.' He said.

Kagura smiled gratefully and nodded her head. Clasping her umbrella tightly, she took off.

'I'd better see you guys after this!' She shouted.

Abuto cursed inwardly. He didn't want that little girl to get to his boss, but the only way to stop her was to get through that demon of a man who had defeated the King of the Night himself. He couldn't help but smile.

'I get all the shitty jobs, don't I?'

He was surprised when Gintoki returned the smile with one of his own.

'Try taking care of two rotten kids and tell me your job is still shitty!' He said, as he charged forward with his sword.

* * *

The attack had commenced as soon as the ships had touched ground. Katsura had to admit that Takasugi had more than enough manpower to do the job. The Shogun's guards had all come out in droves to defend the palace and the place soon evolved into a battlefield filled with the sounds of swords clashing, blood pouring and men screaming. The elite members of the Kiheitai were taking down the guard like they were made of wheat; Bansai seemed almost bored as he slashed lazily at those who approached him and Matako looked like a trigger happy harpy as she shot at all who moved within her range. Behind them, Takasugi was doing his fair share of killing, though he mostly left the work for the others to do. Katsura was not far from him, and he tried to avoid encounters as much as possible, only killing the few who insisted of battling with him. He didn't know why he did that, but he was uncomfortable with killing them, even though they were his enemies.

Although the Shinsengumi were being dealt with, he knew it was only a matter of time before more reinforcements arrived to defend the palace or worse, the Shogun escaped. Was Takasugi not aware of this?

Before he could wonder more on the plan he had not been entrusted with knowing, a cannon on the ship they had disembarked from fired into the palace, catching the guards unaware and leaving a gaping hole in the building.

'Now.' Takasugi had ordered, moving into the space created and navigating his way up the stairs. Katsura followed closely behind him and a quick glance at his back showed Bansai and Matako at his flank. So then...the men outside...

'Despicable..' He had said in disgust.

Takasugi didn't even have to ask what he meant. He smiled.

'You haven't seen anything yet.'

* * *

Abuto had avoided the first strike from Gintoki's _bokuto_ and retaliated with a strike of his own from his umbrella. The silver haired samurai was able to quickly bring his sword in the way, to the Yato's amazement and aim a kick at his legs, forcing the Vice Captain to move back.

'No wonder my Captain is interested in you; you're as quick and agile as a cat. But...can you handle my strength?!' Abuto asked as he applied more force to his swings, forcing Gintoki to dodge by moving back. After a badly timed swing, Gintoki placed his foot on the umbrella, effectively keeping it down, and smirked.

'I can handle whatever comes my way, be it, crying women or useless old men!' He cried, aiming a strike at Abuto's face.

Abuto was able to move his face out of the way by moving backwards and jerked his weapon upwards, causing the samurai to fly into the air. With a snicker, the Yato aimed at the airborne Gintoki with his umbrella and took several shots. With practised ease, Gintoki swung at them with his sword and landed gracefully.

Behind him, Kondo and Hijikata were each battling a Yato of their own. Hijikata was forced to duck to avoid a kick which had been aimed at his head but used that motion to slash at his opponent's leg, successfully eliciting blood. The Yato recoiled slightly in surprise but recovered quickly and charged at him again.

Kondo was pushed back by the force of his opponent's swing and had to move out of the way of another, creating an opening for him to slash at the Yato's back. His opponent cried out in pain but surprised the Commander by immediately retaliating with a kick to his torso with enough force to elicit blood from Kondo's mouth. Unperturbed, 'Gorilla' grabbed the Yato by his leg and, with amazing strength, threw him like a sack into Hijikata's opponent.

On another side of the battlefield, Kamui was beginning to feel the toll of his injuries from his earlier battle with Sougo and had been forced to move back to take a break from the fighting. Before he had, he saw Gintoki coming out of the Shinsengumi building, and he couldn't help the smile that came to his face.

_Well, it looks like even though I got to see him first I'm not in a condition to put up a decent fight. I guess you win, Shinsuke_

He turned his attention to one of his men who had remained behind to watch over him as he recovered.

'Tell Abuto we are leaving. Our goal was to make sure the Shinsengumi would not provide backup to the Shogun's defence. Although we haven't killed their top dogs we have at least crippled them. We need to hurry and provide reinforcements to Shinsuke's assault.'

'Yes, Captain!' With that he ran off to do as ordered.

Now that he was alone, he leaned back against the wall quietly, still clutching at the part of his chest where he had been impaled.

'Kamui!'

He looked up in surprise to see his sister approaching with an expression of anger on her face. He smiled slightly.

'Well, well, look who finally showed up. My weak, little sister.' He remarked as she came to a halt not far from him. He watched her eyes scan his body silently, taking in the state of his injuries.

'What? Do you wish to take advantage of my injuries to fight me? Even as I am I can take you down.'

Kagura looked up into his eyes at this, silently.

'You stupid, stupid big brother.' She finally said, with a look of - was that pity?

She gasped slightly in surprise at the look of anger he shot her.

'What do you want?' He asked, to her irritation. She swung her umbrella at his face, forcing him to duck.

'What do I WANT? After everything you've done, to your family, to the people here? I can't believe you have the audacity to ask me that!'

'In spite of 'all I've done' you don't seem to want to leave me alone like I had hoped. You're so stupid that you can't take a hint. Don't tell me you still think I'll go home with you? That we'll be one happy family again? I no longer consider you people my family any more.'

Kagura's eyes widened slightly with hurt, but she quashed those feelings remarkably quickly and aimed her umbrella at her brother. If he wasn't prepared to listen with words...

'Then, brother, I'll have to take you with me and beat some sense into you.'

'I'd like to see you try.'

* * *

As soon as Kondo had hauled his opponent into Hijikata's, the raven haired Vice Commander had struck them through with his sword, downing them. They were both panting heavily, and blood was dripping down their faces as they struggled to stay standing. But they didn't have time to consider their fatigue as another Yato sneaked up from behind, surprising them.

'Shit!'

Before they could be hit, Gintoki had thrown his bokuto into the Yato's neck, causing the Yato to fall instantly with a gurgled cry. Abuto punished him for being distracted by giving him a huge whack, throwing him into a wall at breakneck speed.

'Yorozuya!' Kondo shouted, charging at Abuto with his Deputy at his side. They paused when another Yato made his way to Abuto's side and whispered into his ear. Abuto relaxed.

'Oh is that so? Then tell the men to depart immediately.'

'Yes, Vice Captain!' The Yato ran off as quickly as he had come.

'What?' Hijikata was shocked.

'Do you think we'll let you get away?!' Kondo wondered angrily.

Abuto laughed, though he wiped at some blood around his mouth. Damn, for an Earthling that samurai could hit hard!

'You should be happy we're sparing your worthless lives. And at least I won't get into trouble for fighting that man. Be happy for now, but be warned that we might be back for you soon.' With that he ran off, leaving them.

They watched him go off wordlessly before returning their attention to Gintoki, who was forcing himself to stand from within the crater he had left on the wall. Hijikata came up to him and helped him up.

'I suppose I should be thanking you for your help.' He said begrudgingly as he placed Gintoki's arm over his shoulder for support.

Gintoki smiled.

'You could try but you know you won't. You don't have it in you.' He replied. Kondo smiled at that.

'Then allow me to thank you, Yorozuya.' He said with a bow. 'We owe you our lives.'

'Heh, you bastards should pay up this time. Twenty cartons of strawberry milk won't even be enough.'

* * *

Kamui blocked a blow from his sister's umbrella with his own. In spite of his earlier words he knew he was at a significant disadvantage; unlike him, she had not yet been fully involved in battle so he bided his time. He dodged another blow aimed at his torso and held out his umbrella, taking several shots and forcing his sister to move out of the way.

Kagura realised her brother seemed to be holding out for something and turned round to see what it could be. She was surprised to see the Yato pulling back, returning to their Captain's side.

'Well, sister, it looks like you won't be getting your wish today.' Her brother remarked. She turned to him, realising her chance was running out.

'Kamui...please...don't leave...' She begged. It was almost like when she had been younger, when she had asked him to stay with her.

Kamui scoffed.

'It's too late for that.'

'Indeed little girl!' Kagura had little warning but she was able to dodge Abuto's blow as he came up to them. Kamui raised his hand, stopping him.

'Leave her be. Save your energy for worthier opponents.'

'If you insist, Captain.' He replied, beckoning for the men to head back. As they obliged he returned his attention to his Captain, who was looking at his sister.

'The next time we meet, I hope to kill you.' Kamui told her. With that, he took off with Abuto following closely behind. They quickly disappeared from view.

'Kamui!'

'Kagura.' Gintoki's voice called, turning her attention away from him. She was dismayed to see that Gintoki had been badly bruised, though he was now standing on his own, and came up to him.

'Gin-chan!' She hugged him and, ignoring the pain it caused, he hugged her back. He realised that she was sobbing and patted her head.

'Gin-chan, I failed. I...I wasn't able to get him.' She murmured.

'Don't worry, you'll get him next time.' Was all he said, and it was enough. She smiled and nodded her head, wiping her tears away.

'Of course.'

Gintoki smiled back and looked around. Hijikata and Kondo were making their way over to them with some of their officers.

'Where's Shinpachi?' He asked her, hoping he hadn't been caught up in the battle. Kagura shook her head.

'It's a long story, Gin-chan. After we left you in the morning, Sadist joined us and we spent the day searching for Zura.' Gintoki's eyes widened at the mention of Sougo joining them but he didn't interrupt. 'We split up, but it was Shinpachi who warned us about the Yato attack on the Shinsengumi and said he'd meet us here. Unlike us, he was on foot so I'm sure he should be coming soon.' She said.

'I see.' Gintoki said. Hijikata scoffed.

'So, that's what Sougo was doing the whole day. I suppose I can overlook his and Yamazaki's disobedience, seeing as how it saved our lives.' He said, shooting a look at the relieved Yamazaki. 'But now...' He turned to his Commander.

Kondo sighed, having already anticipated that Hijikata would ask once everything was over.

'Kondo-san...what the hell has been going on lately? You promised to tell me and I think the Yorozuya have a right to know as well.' His Deputy demanded.

Gintoki and Kagura turned to him as well, though they were silent. Taking in a deep breath, Kondo decided to begin.

'It all started when-'

'Gin-san! Kagura-chan!' They all turned to see Shinpachi running over to them.

'Shinpachi!' They replied, relieved to see him. Hijikata's eyebrow twitched.

''LIKE HELL IF THIS IS HOW THE CHAPTER ENDS! I AM FINALLY GOING TO GET MY ANSWERS SO EVERYONE IS GOING TO SIT DOWN, KEEP QUIET AND LISTEN TO KONDO-SAN'S EXPLANATION! NO MORE INTERRUPTIONS!' He yelled.

By the time he was done, everyone was quietly seated on the ground and looking up expectantly at Kondo.

'Please continue Kondo-san.' Hijikata beckoned. Obliging, Kondo cleared his throat.

'Well like I said, it all started when we began receiving tip-offs on the Jouishishi a few months ago. We didn't know where they were coming from, but they proved reliable and we were able to make some key arrests. On one occasion, we were almost able to get a hold of Katsura and his men but they became aware of our presence and fled. Not long after that, I received a letter from him-'

'You received a letter from Zura?' Gintoki asked, surprised. Kondo nodded his head gravely.

'Yes. I don't know how he did it, but I woke up one day to see a letter right next to my bed.'

Hijikata's eyes widened. So Katsura had been able to get into the heavily guarded headquarters without being seen? Not only that, he had had a chance to take out the Commander and hadn't taken it?

'When I opened it, he informed me that the information we had been receiving... was from the Kiheitai.'

'WHAT?!' Everyone but Gintoki shouted. Gintoki's eyes had narrowed at the insinuation.

_So...Takasugi is involved..._

'You mean the Joui are being betrayed by fellow Joui? That's strange, are they not comrades?' Yamazaki wondered.

Hijikata crossed his arms.

'It's not much of a surprise. That Takasugi is in a world of his own and seeing as how he's teamed up with Amantos he probably doesn't consider himself 'Joui' any more. But as to why he would betray them...'

Kondo shrugged.

'Your guess is as good as mine. But considering what Katsura said...I realised that if it was found out that we had been unintentionally getting information from the Kiheitai it could be twisted against us. Katsura assured me he would not expose us, but he had conditions.'

'Conditions?' Shinpachi asked.

'Yes. He demanded that Captain Saitou should be the medium of correspondence between us since he wanted someone he could trust to be discreet. He told me that he would be at a certain ramen restaurant and he gave me the time. He told me to set my men on him, but to make sure we did our best not to destroy the restaurant.'

Gintoki's eyes widened as he recalled his friend's actions that day. He had been continuously looking out the window, as if looking for something. Now it made sense.

'So he wanted you to arrest me.' He murmured.

'He didn't tell me that at the time. But Saitou brought another letter from him telling me to make sure you stayed in bars.'

'So...that's why...' Hijikata realised.

'But why would Zura do all that? Why did he want you out of the way?' Kagura wondered, looking at Gintoki's thoughtful face. Shinpachi sighed.

'I saw him tonight.'

They all turned to him at this.

'Shinpachi, you saw Zura?' Gintoki asked him. Shinpachi nodded his head.

'Gin-san, Elizabeth and I followed him. We saw him and another man board a ship that was docked at the port and they spoke with... Takasugi and Kamui.'

All of their eyes widened. Yamazaki growled angrily.

'You mean he's been deceiving us?! He stopped us from hunting the Jouishishi by discrediting our sources just so that we would leave them alone?!'

'No, that makes no sense! Why then did he not kill Kondo-san when he had the chance?' Hijikata wondered.

Kagura turned to Shinpachi.

'Shinpachi, you were with Elizabeth? Where is she?'

'E-Elizabeth-san got captured making sure I escaped.'

Gintoki's eyes widened.

'Shinpachi, is that ship still there? Are Zura and Takasugi still there?'

'When I left it was still there but I don't know about now...'

'Damn...'

They were snapped out of their musings when an officer ran over to them.

'Commander, Vice Commander!'

'What is it?' Hijikata snapped.

'We've received reports that the Palace is being attacked by the Jouishishi!'

'WHAT?!' Kondo and Hijikata stood up.

'What are your orders, sirs?'

'We need to regroup. We've suffered too much to put up a suitable defence!' Hijikata bemoaned. He turned to the officer.

'Who are the attackers?'

'Onlookers claim to have seen both Takasugi and Katsura at the helm of the attack.' Came the reply.

Gintoki stood up silently, his eyes wide in realisation. Kagura and Shinpachi turned to him, surprised.

'Gin-san?'

'Gin-chan?'

'That idiot...'


	12. Truth

**A/N: *sigh* The recent arc of the manga has completely thrown everything I had planned off course! Given the things that have happened (don't worry I won't spoil you if you haven't been spoiled already) I realise I have to quickly finish this story and move on. Enjoy! Sorry it took so long...Oh and a big thanks to all those who reviewed the previous chapter! :) **

* * *

_Chapter 11: Truth_

Shinpachi had seen death before; after all his father had died in front of him and his sister when they were kids. But that could not possibly have prepared him for what he was seeing now. All of those bodies...the overpowering stench of blood...he had to cover his mouth to keep back the urge to puke. Kagura and Gintoki seemed to be handling it better than him, not surprising given their past experiences, and they watched the Shinsengumi carry away the bodies with grim expressions.

After a few minutes of looking on at the macabre scene, Hijikata made his way over to them. He had a cigarette in his mouth and his hands were in his pockets but his casual stance did not fool them. They knew he was grieving in his own way for the men he had lost.

'We will need to regroup before we can even think of launching an offensive on Takasugi's forces. We have spoken with our Commissioner Matsudaira, he will be there soon with his forces.' Kagura's and Shinpachi's eyes widened in shock. Hijikata's gaze moved away from them to Gintoki, who looked back at him evenly. 'If you want to have any chance of getting to Katsura, you had better get there before he does.'

Gintoki nodded his head slowly though it was clear to all that his mind was elsewhere. As to what he was thinking, Hijikata could only wonder.

'Gin-san...' Shinpachi started, wondering at Gintoki's unusual solemness. Kagura smiled and took his hand.

'Let's go, Gin-chan.' She said with a smile so cute, it was hard to believe she could be such a gluttonous tomboy-

'ARGGHH!' Gintoki flew ten metres into the air with a loud cry before falling to the floor. He raised himself up and had to cover his now bleeding nose.

'What was that for?!' He almost screamed.

Kagura shrugged and turned away, with her umbrella on her shoulder.

'I thought I heard some bad words about me coming from your direction, yeah.'

'Where did this _tsundere_ attitude come from?!'

Hijikata watched the ensuing argument and inwardly marvelled at how they could act like this under such circumstances _._ But then again...this _was_ the Yorozuya. He sighed and threw something towards them, halting their argument as Gintoki caught it in his hand and took a closer look. It was a car key.

'Better get going.'

* * *

'We have our ships and helicopters surrounding the exterior of the palace to ensure that the Shogun does not flee by roof so he should be somewhere in this building.' Matako was saying as they made their way through each of the rooms in the palace.

'Still, we must do this quickly before reinforcements come. The Shinsengumi may have been disabled but Matsudaira will arrive with more units.' Bansai remarked.

The verandah they were traversing soon split into two separate sections, causing them to slow to a halt at the intersection.

'It might be quicker if we split up to cover the East and West sections.' Bansai recommended.

Matako shot a sideway glance at Katsura, who had crossed his arms and was looking ahead, before turning to Takasugi.

'Shinsuke-sama, Bansai-sama, allow me to go with Katsura along with half of the men while you go the other way.' She suggested.

Katsura's olive brown eyes turned to her at this, but he didn't say anything. Bansai shook his head.

'Should something go wrong, Matako, you won't be able to handle him.' He replied, to her irritation. She clenched her fists.

'I can handle a one-handed swordsman!' She snapped.

'One-handed he may be, but he is still out of your league.' Came the calm response. Matako turned away indignantly and crossed her arms. Bansai did feel some sympathy and understanding for her, after all he didn't trust Katsura either. He turned to the long haired swordsman, whose mind seemed to be elsewhere and not at all bothered with their suspicion, before nodding his head.

'I will go with him.' He said.

'No, Bansai.' Takasugi said, finally intervening. They all turned to him.

'Shinsuke-sama?' Matako's eyes went wide with dread as she realised what he was about to say.

'Zura will come with me.'

'It's not Zura, it's Katsura.' Katsura replied, breaking his silence.

'After being silent for so long that is all you have to say?!' Matako shouted. She did _not_ want the two of them going together! Not when she didn't trust him to be left with Shinsuke-sama...Not when it could be _her_ and Shinsuke-sama together...

She turned her face away to hide the growing blush on her cheeks.

'Shinsuke...are you sure?' Bansai asked.

Takasugi smirked.

'Don't let his silence fool you. He will not accept to follow anyone else.' He replied, shooting a look at his former comrade before returning his gaze to Bansai.

'We've wasted enough time. Get going.' He ordered, entering one of the verandahs. Katsura followed a moment later along with some of the men who had come along, leaving the two behind.

* * *

'So, you let them go after him?'

Hijikata glanced over his shoulder as Kondo approached him and sighed.

'They wouldn't have been stayed even if I wanted to keep them back. Besides, we owe them one.' He replied, as his Commander came to a stop beside him.

Kondo let out a deep breath and placed his hands in his pocket. He had an unusually grave expression on his face and Hijikata decided to remain silent, waiting for him to speak what was on his mind.

He wasn't disappointed when moments later Kondo proceeded to do just that.

'Sometimes I feel as if, even though we have different approaches, we all want the same thing. It makes you wonder why we fight against each other instead of _with _each other.' He remarked.

'Are you speaking of the Jouishishi?'

Kondo smiled and shook his head.

'No. At least not all of them. I'm talking about the real patriots; the ones who don't harm the very people they claim to be protecting.'

'Like Katsura.' Hijikata remarked softly. With a sigh he took a whiff of his cigarette and let out a puff of smoke. As he watched the smoke disintegrate into the air, he smiled.

'Perhaps a day will come when we can sit down and drink sake together, not as enemies but as comrades.'

Kondo's smile widened.

'Looks like that day may not be as far away as we think.'

* * *

'Ohhhhh!' Shinpachi shouted as the car Gintoki was driving (at full speed) went over a bump in the road, raising both it and the people within. Shinpachi gave another grunt as gravity pulled him back down to his seat with a thud. Wordlessly, he put his seatbelt on.

'Gin-chan, we're almost there!' Kagura encouraged, barely fazed, as she pointed at the palace in the distance.

Gintoki had been surprisingly silent throughout the trip, but he nodded his head to acknowledge her words. As they got closer their eyes widened at the extent of fighting at the base of the palace.

'They've already breached the palace wall!' Shinpachi realised.

'Zura must have gone in with them!' Kagura added.

'Gin-san, how will we get through all these people?'

Gintoki only smirked, confusing the two kids, until it dawned on them what he was about to do. Kagura put her seatbelt on.

'HERE WE GOOOO!' Gintoki shouted, pressing the accelerator and driving straight towards the palace 'entrance'. Palace guards and Jouishishi were forced to move aside as the car drove through.

As they approached the palace, Gintoki pressed on the breaks, causing the car's wheels to screech as it came to a halt just in front of the entrance, and stepped out. Shinpachi and Kagura followed and came to stand beside him.

'It's Shiroyasha!' Some of the Jouishishi realised, upon seeing Gintoki's silver hair.

'Don't let him to get to Takasugi-sama!'

'Gin-chan, Shinpachi! Move back!' Kagura shouted as they moved away from the car. Taking out her umbrella, she aimed it at the car's bonnet and started shooting, causing the engine within to explode and stopping the men's advance. The explosion also made the entrance close in, preventing anyone else from entering after them.

Gintoki nodded his head in approval.

'Let's go.'

_Before it's too late_

* * *

Takasugi and Katsura's group had run into more palace guards as they progressed until it finally reached a point where all the men following them had fallen, leaving the two of them alone. Seemingly unaffected, Takasugi casually wrenched his sword from the body of a palace guard.

'It's just the two of us now. This is what you have wanted all along, is it not?' He asked.

He felt a sword being pointed at his back and smiled.

Katsura closed his eyes for a few seconds before opening them again.

'Forgive me, old friend, but you will not be taking the Shogun's head today.'


End file.
